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LI  T3R  ARY 

OF   Till 

UNIVERSITY   OF  CALIFORNIA. 

GIRT    OR 


Received  ...       ...W 

Accessions  No.  X^^  £>jy  hel    No. 


WORKERS  AHD  IDLERS. 


MERRITT  H.  DEMENT. 


CHICAGO : 

1883. 


Entered  according  to  act  of  Congress,  iu  the  year  1883,  by 

MERRITT  H.  DEMENT, 

in  the  Office  of  the  Librarian  of  Congress,  at  Washington. 
ALL  KK.IIT<  UKSKKVKD. 


111  fares  the  land  to  hastening  ills  a  prey. 
Where  wealth  accumulates,  and  men  decay. 
Princes  and  lords  may  flourish  or  may  fade  ; 
A  breath  can  make  them  as  a  breath  has  made 
But  a  bold  peasantry,  their  country's  pride, 
When  once  destroyed,  can  never  be  supplied.'' 

—  Goldsmith 


\ 


Workers  and  Idlers. 


I. 

After  eighteen  hundred  years  of  Christianity, 
four  hundred  years  of  printing,  and  one  hundred 
years  of  invention,  we  have  come  to  look  upon 
ourselves  as  the  highest  type  of  civilization,  and 
far  advanced  over  the  barbarians  who  preceded 
us  in  all  that  tends  to  make  us  what  men  should 
be.  In  some  respects,  this  belief  is  justified 
The  broad  and  ready  diffusion  of  knowledge  by 
means  of  the  art  of  printing,  has  made  it  possi- 
ble for  every  one  to  know  that  which  any  one 
knows ;  and  while,  formerly,  men  of  thought  en- 
lightened only  their  immediate  hearers,  to-day, 
they  speak  to,  reason  with,  and  enlighten,  not 
alone  those  who  see  and  hear  them,  but  all  the 
world  besides. 

To-day,  if  one  sees  a  black  pall  across  the  sun, 
he  need  not  run  wild  with  dismay  and  fear ;  and 


if  a  sleeping  mountain  become  resonant  with 
strange  and  terrible  noises,  and  begin  to  emit 
clouds  of  vapor  and  rivers  of  molten  matter, 
those  who  hear  and  see  it,  need  not  fear  them- 
selves objects  of  the  wrath  of  some  subterranean 
deity ;  for  men  of  thought,  broad-minded  and  lib- 
eral, have  refused  to  fear  and  dared  to  think  and 
investigate.  And  now,  the  people  may  placidly 
view  an  eclipse  of  the  sun  at  midday ;  because 
they  know  that  the  moon  in  its  course,  is  simply 
for  a  moment  passing  between  the  earth  and  the 
sun.  And  they  may  hear  the  rumbling  of  the 
volcano,  arid  see  the  rivers  of  lava  pouring  from 
its  mouth,  with  only  the  awe  due  to  grandeur,  for 
they  know  that  it  is  simply  the  action  of  natural 
elements. 

In  this  respect,  so*  far  as  this  diffusion  of  knowl- 
edge and  consequent  dissipation  of  ignorance 
and  superstition  have  taken  place,  the  world  has 
advanced. 

But  there  are  many  things  in  which  no  prog- 
ress whatever  has  been  made.  There  are  many 
evils  which  afflict  society  to-day  as  seriously  as 
in  the  days  of  barbarism.  And  there  are  evils 


which  have  come  into  being  as  results  of  our 
civilization,  and  which  were  unknown  before. 
And  it  is  the  purpose  of  this  book  to  call  atten- 
tion to  some  of  these  ;  and  to  suggest  a  remedy 
therefor. 


jj^ 

One  of  the  strangest  lessons  in  history  is  the 
fact  that  nations,  like  all  animate  existence,  have 
been  subject  to  the  infirmities  of  age,  and  certain 
of  final  dissolution.  From  the  most  ancient 
times  down  to  the  present,  kingdoms  and  empires 
have  sprung  into  existence  from  simple  and  insig- 
nificant sources;  have  grown  to  greatness  and 
power ;  have  fallen  into  their  dotage,  and  have 
passed  away.  History,  upon  one  page,  dwells 
glowingly  upon  the  magnificence,  luxury  and 
opulence  of  a  people  ;  and  upon  the  next  recites 
their  downfall  and  destruction. 

The  sands  of  Western  Asia  and  Northern  Africa 
have  been  weighted  with  the  temples  and  palaces 
of  a  hundred  nations,  whose  opulence  and  glories, 
whose  power  and  dominion,  perhaps,  can  never 
be  excelled. 


Greece  and  Rome,  the  morning  of  Europe, 
whose  suns  first  illumined  its  wildernesses;  whose 
sturdy  warriors  none  could  resist;  and  whose 
orators  and  scholars  are  still  teaching  the  world, 
have  passed  away. 

And  of  the  Empires  of  Cyrus  and  the  Pharaohs  ; 
of  Demosthenes  and  Caesar,  nothing  remains,  save 
a  few  crumbling  ruins,  which,  like  gravestones, 
mark  the  resting  places  of  the  mighty  dead,  and 
weak  and  aimless  peoples,  who  barely  preserve 
their  traditions. 

Greece  and  Italy  are  to  day  mere  shells  of  their 
former  selves.  They  are  like  dead  trees  in  a  for- 
est. They  have  the  shape  without  the  life  ;  the 
limbs  without  the  leaves.  They  are  simply  rot- 
tening.  Spain,  too,  has  been  touched  with  the 
palsy  of  nations.  Austria,  Turkey  and  Portugal 
are  showing  symptoms  of  the  disease.  The  soil 
of  England  cannot  feed  her  people  to-day.  Bel- 
gium, France  and  Germany  are  producing  less  and 
importing  more  food  every  year.  Even  in  the 
United  States,  young  and  vigorous  as  that  nation 
is,  there  are  already  plainly  to  be  seen  the  symp- 
toms of  this  disease.  As  Greece  and  Rome  caught 


the  infection  from  Western  Asia,  as  Northern 
Europe  caught  it  from  Rome  and  Greece,  so  is 
America  catching  it  from  England  and  France. 

Some  of  the  old  Asian  empires  endured  for  more 
than  a  thousand  years ;  some  of  the  European 
empires,  in  one  form  and  another,  have  endured 
for  nearly  as  long.  But  the  same  forces  which 
destroyed  in  Asia,  are  at  their  work  of  destruc- 
tion in  Europe  and  America.  And  while  in  our 
ephemeral  existence  great  changes  do  not  take 
place ;  while  the  great  living  empires  seem  as 
strong  and  powerful  at  the  end  as  at  the  be- 
ginning of  our  short  lives  ;  yet  we  must  not  lose 
sight  of  the  fact  that  such  changes  are  really  tak- 
ing place.  And  that  notwithstanding  the  better- 
ment of  the  race,  through  the  wide  dissemination 
of  knowledge  by  means  of  printing,  and  through 
the  establishment  of  an  improved  form  of  relig- 
ion, it  seems  only  a  question  of  time,  when  the 
present  magnificent  and  opulent  empires  of 
Europe  and  America,  shall  become  the  victims  of 
this  scourge  of  nations,  and  their  dense  masses 
be  replaced  by  a  few  nomads  for  whom  alone  the 
soil  will  then  be  fitted. 


Ill, 

If  it  may  be  taken  as  true  that  nations  do  in- 
evitably decay,  it  should  not  be  considered  imper- 
tinent nor  presuming,  in  this  age  of  reason,  to  pro- 
pose an  inquiry  into  the  causes  of  this  decay, 
and  to  consider  whether  a  remedy  may  not  be 
possible  therefor. 

Without  a  dissertation  on  the  origin  of  nations, 
it  may  be  sufficient  to  say  that  every  nation 
which  has  grown  to  greatness  has  derived  its 
strength  from  the  fact  that  it  contained  in  its  or- 
ganism the  proper  elements  of  social  concord  and 
unity  ;  and  has  lost  its  strength  and  vitality  only 
when  these  elements  have  ceased  to  exist  within 
it. 

The  chief  of  these  elements  is  an  equal  distri- 
bution of  the  burdens  and  enjoyments  of  life. 
Another  is  the  possession  by  each  individual  of  an 
equal  interest  and  an  equal  voice,  with  every 
other  individual,  in  the  government.  Another  is 
the  giving  to  each  individual  of  the  largest  liberty 
compatible  with  the  general  well-being. 


11 

The  equal  distribution  of  the  burdens  of  life 
means  the  equal  distribution  of  the  labor  by 
which  the  necessaries  of  society,  such  as  food, 
clothing  etc.,  are  produced,  and  by  which  the 
government  is  supported.  In  other  words,  it  is 
such  a  condition  of  society  that  each  individual 
produces  by  his  own  labor  the  food  necessary  for 
his  sustenance,  and  the  clothing  necessary  for  his 
comfort;  or  else,  produces  by  his  labor  other 
things  of  value,  which  he  contributes  to  society 
in  exchange  for  those  things  which  he  requires. 

To  feed  and  clothe  and  govern  a  nation,  a  cer- 
tain amount  of  labor  must  be  performed.  The 
food  must  be  raised,  the  clothing  must  be 
manufactured,  and  the  laws  must  be  made  and 
administered.  There  must  be  raised  a  sufficient 
quantity  of  wheat,  coin,  oats,  barley,  fruit,  veg- 
etables, cotton,  flax,  etc.  There  must  be  raised 
a  sufficient  quantity  of  cattle,  sheep,  hogs, 
poultry,  etc.  The  wool,  cotton  and  flax,  must 
-be  woven  into  cloth,  and  -made  into  clothing. 
The  grain  must  be  ground,  and  the  cattle,  sheep 
and  hogs  must  be  slaughtered.  There  must  be 
courts  to  decide  disputes  ;  there  must  be  lawyers 


12 

and  doctors ;  there  must  be  moral  and  education- 
al teachers  ;  and  so  on. 

In  a  proper  condition  of  society,  every  man 
should  do  his  share  of  this  labor.  If  one  man 
shall  work  more  intelligently  or  more  rapidly 
than  another,  he  need  not  work  as  many  hours 
as  the  other  in  order  to  do  society  the  same 
amount  of  good.  The  true  test  being  that  each 
individual  should  contribute  to  society  the  same 
amount  of  good  result.  And  as  long  as  each 
man  does  this,  no  man  can  be  a  burden  upon 
others ;  and  no  man  will  be  burdened  with  the 
labor  of  supporting  others. 

This  state  of  society  is  found  to  exist  in  all 
new  communities  And  where  it  exists,  and  as 
long  as  it  exists,  there  will  be  contentment  and 

prosperity ;  there  will  be  patriotism  and  fraternity  ; 

• 

there  will  be  neither  poverty  nor  riches ;  neither 
extravagance  nor  destitution. 

But  as  the  nation  grows  older  this  condition 
gradually  disappears.  And  instead  of  the  people 
being  all  of  one  class,  with  an  equal  distribution 
of  burdens  and  enjoyments,  we  find  that  some 
are  no  longer  carrying  their  share  of  the  burdens. 


13 

and  are  getting  more  than  their  share  of  the  enjoy- 
ments of  life ;  while  others  are  doing  more  than 
their  share  of  work,  and  getting  scarcely  any  en- 
joyment at  all.  We  find  that  human  beings  are 
naturally  selfish;  and  that  those  who  can  will 
place  themselves  in  positions  where  they  will 
obtain  the  necessaries  of  life,  and  the  enjoyments 
and  luxuries  as  well,  without  working  for  them. 
We  find  that  this  class  constantly  increases  in 
number.  We  find  them  growing  very  rich  in 
the  possession  of  property  and  money  ;  while,  in 
the  same  ratio,  others  are  growing  very  poor 
from  the  lack  of  property  and  money. 

We  find  them  obtaining  a  monopoly  of  the 
powers  of  society,  and  using  those  powers  to  in- 
crease their  stores  of  money  and  property,  and  to 
decrease,  to  that  extent,  the  stores  of  the  others. 

We  find  that  those  who  work  are  very  poor ; 
and  those  who  do  not  are  very  rich.  We  find 
that  the  men  who  build  houses  have  none  of 
their  own.  We  find  that  the  men  who  make 
clothes  have  very  little  to  wear.  We  find  that 
those  who  raise  food  have  very  little  to  eat. 

We  find  the  rich   monopolizing   the    pleasures 


14 

and  recreations  of  life,  and  giving  to   the  poor  a 
monopoly  of  the  miseries  and  labors  of  life. 

We  find  that  the  rich  have  so  much  enjoyment 
and  so  many  pleasures  that  they  are  surfeited 
and  bored  and  worn  out  with  them ;  and  life  has 
to  them  become  a  burden  from  a  lack  of  healthy 
occupation.  And  we  find  the  poor  are  surfeited 
and  worn  out  with  labor  and  misery,  and  their 
lives  made  almost  intolerable  from  a  lack  of 
healthy  recreation  and  pleasure. 

We  find  the  rich  living  in  magnificent  palaces, 
surrounded  by  beautiful  gardens  filled  with 
beautiful  trees  and  flowers,  and  fragrant  with 
sweetest  odors.  And  we  find  the  poor  existing 
in  damp  cellars,  or  small  rooms,  with  blank  walls 
and  foul  odors  around  them. 

We  find  the  rich  monopolizing  the  desirable 
and  healthful  places  of  living,  the  hillsides  and 
and  broad  streets,  with  pure  air  and  beautiful 
landscapes  to  give  them  health  and  pleasure. 
And  we  find  the  poor  hoveling  in  the  valleys 
and  alleys,  exposed  to  foul  air  and  disease. 

We  find  the  rich  employing  the  wisest  and  best 
doctors  to  guard  their  health  and  cure  their 


15 

maladies.  And  we  find  the  poor  compelled  to  go 
to  the  dull  and  inexperienced,  the  quacks  and 
cure-alls,  at  the  risk  of  their  lives. 

We  find  the  rich  employing  the  shrewdest  and 
ablest  lawyers  to  guard  their  rights  and  further 
their  ends ;  while  the  poor  are  compelled  to  in- 
trust their  "  little  all "  to  the  care  of  cheap  and 
incompetent  ones. 

We  find  the  children  of  the  rich  educated  at 
the  best  schools  and  colleges  ;  while  those  of  the 
poor  must  be  content  with  the  public  schools, 
and  are  often  deprived  of  the  benefit  of  those, 
because  the  wages  of  the  father  are  so  small  as 
to  require  that  they,  too,  should  devote  their 
time  to  work  to  help  support  the  family. 

We  find  the  rich  occupying  the  best  pews  in 
the  churches,  and  all  the  pews  in  the  best 
churches,  thus  excluding  the  poor,  and  depriving 
them  of  the  opportunity  for  the  moral  lesson 
which  is  certainly  greatly  needed  to  -make  them 
charitable  enough  to  tolerate  the  haughty  rich. 

We  find  the  rich  riding  in  elegant  carriages, 
drawn  by  blooded  and  richly  caparisoned  horses, 
driven  by  liveried  coachmen  and  attended  by  liv- 


16 

eried  footmen.  We  find  that  the  poor  oftentimes 
cannot  afford  even  the  crowded  street  cars,  and 
are  compelled  to  walk  perhaps  long  distances,  in 
stormy  weather,  at  early  hours  to  the  place  of 
unremitting  toil,  and  at  late  hours  to  a  miserable 
habitation. 

We  find  that  the  rich  monopolize  the  best 
amusements,  the  whole  house  at  an  opera,  and  the 
best  seats  at  the  drama,  because  they  will  pay  more 
than  the  others  can  pay ;  while  the  poor,  if  they 
be  amused  at  all,  must  climb  to  the  distant, 
crowded  and  uncomfortable  gallery. 

We  find  the  rich  clad  in  the  most  elegant  and 
beautiful  clothing,  soft  and  warm  and  comfortable  ; 
while  the  clothes  of  the  poor,  what  little  they 
have,  are  ugly  and  coarse,  worn  and  patched. 

We  find  the  rich  traveling  in  luxurious  cars, 
provided  with  cushioned  chairs  and  soft  couches ; 
sometimes  one  family,  or  even  one  person,  exclu- 
sively occupying  a  whole  car  While  if  the  poor 
travel,  they  are  compelled  to  go  in  over-crowded, 
low-roofed,  small-windowed,  ill-ventilated  cars, 
with  bare  wooden  seats. 

We  find  the  homes  of  the  rich  provided  with 


17 

every  comfort  and  luxury ;  while  the  poor 
scarcely  have  the  necessary  utensils  of  house- 
keeping. 

We  find  the  tables  of  the  rich  loaded  with  every 
variety  of  food,  prepared  in  the  most  palatable 
manner;  while  in  the  huts  of  the  poor,  a  few 
crumbs  in  one  hand  and  a  cup  of  water  in  the 
other  must  often  suffice. 

We  look  upon  the  palaces  of  the  rich,  and  then 
upon  the  huts  of  the  poor.  We  see  rotund 
Plenty  in  one,  and  gaunt  Destitution  in  the  other. 
We  see  rosy  Health  in  one,  and  pallid  Disease  in 
the  other.  We  see  in  the  one,  gay  and  festive 
Joy,  and  in  the  other  grim  and  ghastly  Misery. 

We  see  the  pride  and  arrogance  of  the  rich ;  we 
see  them  flaunting  their  extravagance  and  luxury 
in  the  faces  of  the  poor.  We  see  the  poor  grad- 
ually degraded,  until  they  become  the  mere  tools, 
servants  and  menials  of  the  rich.  We  see  them 
lose  their  dignity  and  self-respect,  and  become 
coarse  in  their  manners  and  tastes,  and  cross,  un- 
sociable and  disagreeable.  We  find  the  land  full 
of  discontentment  and  agitation.  We  find  com- 
plaint upon  one  hand,  and  recrimination  upon  the 
other. 


18 

We  find  the  affairs  of  government  neglected, 
because  the  masses  are  engaged  in  a  struggle  for 
actual  existence.  We  find  the  masses  becoming 
reckless.  We  find  that  saloons  flourish,  that 
drunkenness  increases,  that  men  grow  brutish. 
Compelled  to  live  like  brutes,  they  acquire  the 
natures  and  attributes  of  brutes.  We  find  that 
crime  increases ;  murders,  the  most  brutal,  are 
committed  ;  burglaries,  robberies  and  thefts  are 
frequent;  wives  are  cruelly  beaten;  women 
are  outraged ;  houses  are  burned ;  trusts  are 
betrayed ;  widows  and  orphans  are  robbed ; 
savings  stolen;  honor  lost.  All  is  unbridled 
luxury  and  ease  upon  one  hand,  and  unbridled 
desperation  and  misery  upon  the  other. 

These  things  grow  upon  the  body  social  like 
cancerous  sores  upon  the  body  human.  They 
arise  from  an  impure  and  unnatural  condition  of 
the  social  system. 

And  this  condition  saps  the  strength  of  the 
nation,  and  it  inevitably  decays. 


IV. 

It  then  becomes  pertinent  and  important  to  in- 
quire into  the  origin  of  this  condition  of  society  ; 
to  know  by  what  right  the  rich  monopolize  all  the 
benefits  and  beauties  of  life,  and  leave  to  the 
poor  the  drudgery  and  the  miseries  ;  and  why  it 
is  that  society  seems  inevitably  to  drift  into  this 
condition  of  unequal  distribution  ;  and  whether 
there  is  not  a  remedy  for  it.  For  we  cannot  con- 
scientiously call  ourselves  an  enlightened  people 
if  we  remain  longer  ignorant  upon  this  question  ; 
and  we  should  not  call  ourselves  civilized  or 
human  if  we  should  remain  inactive  after  a 
remedy  shall  have  been  found. 

On  first  thought,  it  would  seem  that  the  remedy 
would  be  simple  and  easy ;  that  the  blessings  and 
burdens  of  life  need  only  be  properly  divided  ;  that 
he  who  has  too  much  should  yield  up  all  but  his 
proper  share ;  and  he  who  has  less  than  his  share 
should  have  it  made  up  to  him. 

But  if  this  were  put  in  practice,  and  an  equal 
distribution  made,  it  would  not  remedy  the  dif- 


20 

ficulty  ;  for  we  would  soon  find  that  the  shrewder 
or  more  fortunate  were  again  getting  more  than 
their  share  of  the  blessings,  and  carrying  less 
than  their  share  of  the  burdens;  and  that  the  in- 
dolent and  unfortunate  were  again  getting  less 
than  their  share  of  the  blessings,  and  carrying 
more  than  their  share  of  the  burdens.  And,  in 
the  course  of  time,  the  condition  of  unequal  dis- 
tribution would  be  resumed. 

A  second  per  capita  distribution  would  be 
equally  as  inefficient  to  remedy  the  evil  as  the 
first.  And  besides,  the  lazy  and  indolent  would 
in  time  be  encouraged  in  their  shiftlessness  by 
the  fact  that  they  would  get  their  shares  without 
working  for  them ;  while  the  industrious  and 
frugal  would  be  discouraged  from  working  or  sav- 
ing because  the  fruits  of  their  labor  would  be 
taken  from  them  and  distributed  among  the 
whole  community ;  and  society  would  soon  suffer 
for  want  of  the  absolute  necessaries  of  life. 

And  it  will  not  do  to  say  that  the  one  class 
deserve  to  be  rich,  and  the  other  class  deserve  to 
be  poor ;  for  that  would  bring  us  no  remedy. 
We  are  now  seeking  a  reason  and  a  remedy  for 


21 

the  misery  of  the  world.  And  we  must  take  it 
as  a  fact  that,  if  men  are  left  alone,  under  the 
present  system,  owing  to  their  different  capaci- 
ties and  traits,  and  the  difference  in  their  sur- 
roundings, there  will  eventually  be  an  unequal 
distribution  of  wealth.  And  it  is  also  true  that 
as  society  grows  older,  the  rich  continually  get 
richer  and  the  poor  get  poore^until  the  equilibrium 
of  society  is  destroyed;  and  the  bad  results  be- 
fore stated  are  attained. 

It  has  also  been  suggested  that  the  property 
of  a  rich  man  should  be  taken  at  his  death  by 
the  government ;  and  that  this  would  prevent  the 
growth  of  immense  fortunes.  But  such  a  law 
could  scarcely  be  called  just ;  and  could  be  easily 
evaded  by  the  rich  man  disposing  of  his  property 
before  death,  or  secreting  it  so  that  his  heirs,  and 
no  one  else,  could  find  it.  To  enforce  such  a  law, 
there  would  be  required  an  inquisitorial  system 
of  government  which  no  free  people  would  tolerate. 
And,  too,  the  world  would  soon  be  full  of  people 
whose  sole  occupation  would  be  waiting  for  rich 
people  to  die. 

It  has  also  been  insisted  that  the  State,  instead 


22 

of  the  landlords,  should  collect  rent  from  landed 
property ;  in  other  words,  that  rent  should  be  "con- 
fiscated by  the  State."  This  system  would  scarce- 
ly accomplish  the  result  desired,  nor  even  change 
the  present  condition.  The  State  already  owns 
the  land  by  right  of  eminent  domain  ;  and  prac- 
tically leases  it  from  year  to  year;  for  no  one  can 
hold  land  who  does  not  pay  a  yearly  rent  or  tax 
to  the  State.  If  he  fails  to  pay,  he  is  ousted,  and 
the  land  goes  to  some  one  else  who  will  pay  more 
promptly. 

This  newr  system  proposes  to  leave  the  present 
owners  in  possession,  with  the  same  rights  as  at 
present,  except  the  payment  of  a  tax  equivalent 
to  the  present  tax  and  the  rent  combined.  There 
is  no  suggestion  that  a  man  who  owns  a  large 
tract  of  land,  a  part  of  which  he  may  now  rent, 
would  be  prevented  from  exercising  his  right 
over  all  his  land  to  cultivate  it  himself  or  permit 
others  to  cultivate  it.  It  is  not  proposed  that  the 
tenant  shall  be  allowed  to  remain  in  possession  of 
the  land  which  he  has  heretofore  rented,  without 
first  obtaining  permission  from  the  owner ;  for 
that  would  be  practically  robbing  the  owner,  and 


23 

giving  the  land  to  the  tenant.  The  landlord  or 
owner  would  still  have  the  right  to  say  whether 
he  should  use  the  land  himself,  or  let  others  use 
it.  And  if  he  shall  let  the  tenant  use  the  land 
upon  barely  paying  the  double  tax,  or  tax  and 
previous  rent,  the  landlord  will  receive  no 
benefit,  and  it  will  be  equivalent  to  giving  the 
land  outright  to  the  tenant.  So  that  the  effect 
of  such  a  system  would  be  that  the  owner  would 
require  the  tenant  to  pay  the  double  tax  and  a 
rent  besides ;  and  the  double  tax  and  the 
rent  would  all  have  to  be  earned  and  paid  by  the 
man  who  cultivates  the  soil. 

And  where  the  owner  cultivates  his  own  land, 
his  property  must  be  taxed  like  all  the  rest;  and 
it  would  be  difficult  to  imagine  him  as  a  very 
contented  individual,  if  his  tax  should  be  in- 
creased seven-fold. 

The  present  tax  is,  say,  one  per  cent  upon  the 
real  value.  The  present  net  rent  which  an 
owner  ordinarily  receives  from  farming  land  is, 
say,  seven  per  cent.  If  this  seven  per  cent  is  to 
be  "confiscated, "  and  added  to  the  tax,  there 
would  then  be  a  tax  of  eight  per  cent.  The  pres- 


24 

ent  tax  of  one  per  cent  is  sufficient  for  all  the 
purposes  of  the  government.  Now,  what  will  the 
government  do  with  this  immense  additional  sum — 
seven  times  as  large  as  its  present  revenues — 
which  it  will  annually  receive  ?  Of  what  use  is  it 
to  the  State  ?  It  has  been  paid,  not  by  the  landlords, 
but  by  the  tenants  and  farmers  of  the  land. 
What  will  be  done  with  it  ?  Shall  it  be  dis- 
tributed equally  every  year  among  the  people  ?  or 
among  the  poor  ?  If  so,  it  would  encourage  the 
indolence  at  the  expense  of  the  industry  of  the 
people.  If  a  man  is  annually  to  receive  a  bounty 
from  the  State,  he  will  have  less  incentive  to 
work.  If  a  farmer  shall  see  the  product  of  his 
labor  distributed  among  those  who  have  not 
earned  it,  he  will  be  discouraged  in  his  industry, 
and  tempted  to  become  a  pauper  with  the  rest. 
Then  who  will  do  the  labor  of  society?  If  the 
money  be  used  to  establish  and  support  great 
charitable  institutions,  the  effect  will  be  the 
same;  for  the  more  charity  we  have,  the  less 
work ;  and  the  less  honest,  sweat-producing  labor 
we  have,  the  more  need  of  charity.  The  principle 
and  motive  of  charity  are  the  finest  part  of  our 


25 

nature ;  but  the  effect  in  great  communities  is 
most  pernicious. 

There  is  to-day  a  national  proprietorship  of 
land ;  and  the  people  pay  rent  in  the  form  of  a 
tax  therefor ;  so  that  a  movement  which  has 
for  its  object  a  national  proprietorship  of  land, 
could  .effect  nothing. 

And  if,  as  has  often  been  suggested,  there 
should  be  an  equal  division  of  land  among  the 
people,  the  result,  if  beneficial  for  a  time,  could 
not  be  lasting.  In  the  first  place,  the  men  from 
whom  land  would  be  taken  would  have  to  be 
robbed  or  paid.  And  then,  in  a  half  a  century, 
or  even  less,  the  indolent  and  unfortunate  would 
have  lost  their  shares  to  the  shrewd,  the  indus- 
trious and  the  fortunate ;  and  there  would  be  the 
same  old  condition  of  Landlord  and  Landless. 


V. 

What  then  is  the  true  solution  of  the  question  ? 
And  why  do  the  rich  get  richer,  and  the  poor  get 
poorer,  until  the  end,  which  is  always  Chaos? 
And  how  can  men  be  prevented  from  getting 
more  than  they  need,  and  thereby  depriving 
others  of  what  they  need  ?  How  can  the  pleas- 
ures and  burdens  of  life  be  properly  apportioned, 
without  discouraging  industry  and  frugality,  and 
without  encouraging  indolence  and  prodigality  ? 
How  may  we  preserve  that  equality  among  men 
in  respect  to  the  means  for  the  enjoyment  of  life, 
which  is  only  found  in  new  communities,  and  then 
soon  lost,  but  which  is  absolutely  essential  to  the 
well-being  of  society  and  to  the  strength  and  per- 
petuity of  the  nation  ? 

The  true  remedy  should  be  one  which  would  ex- 
plain and  rectify  all  the  social  and  political  agita- 
tions of  our  time.  The  Nihilist  in  his  struggle  for  a 
constitution ;  the  Communist  in  his  struggle 
against  unequal  distribution ;  the  Fenian  in  his 
struggle  against  landlordism ;  the  Labor  Unions 


27 

in  their  struggle  against  capital ;  the  poor  in  their 
terrible  struggle  for  existence — all  should  feel 
their  grievances  removed  and  their  wrongs  re- 
dressed. 

The  true  remedy  would  relieve  the  poor  and 
not  wrong  the  rich.  The  laborer  who  toils  ten  or 
twelve  hours  a  day  to  gain  the  bare  means  of 
existence,  would  be  relieved  of  part  of  his  burden, 
and  given  a  chance  for  recreation  and  education. 
The  rich  who  are  absolutely  suffering  and  going 
to  seed  from  a  lack  of  healthful  occupation,  whose 
appetites  and  tastes  are  alike  becoming  depraved, 
would  be  given  a  chance  to  become  conscientious 
and  worthy  members  of  society.  And  the  old 
combats  of  slave  against  master,  of  servant 
against  employer,  of  tenant  against  landlord,  of 
the  poor  against  the  rich,  would  be  forever  ended. 

The  whole  trouble  originates  in  a  very  simple 
source.  The  world  has  thus  far  permitted  a  man 
to  make  whatever  use  he  has  chosen  to  make  of 
his  money  or  property.  It  has  permitted  him  to 
loan  money  on  condition  that  the  borrower,  mean- 
while, shall  give  a  certain  portion  of  the  product 
of  his  labor  toward  the  support  of  the  lender;  and 


28 

to  that  extent  the  borrower  is  the  servant  and 
slave  of  the  lender.  It  has  permitted  a  man,  be- 
sides providing  himself  with  a  home,  to  expend 
his  money  in  other  houses  and  lands,  and  to  loan 
or  rent  them  on  condition  of  the  tenants  giving 
him  a  certain  portion  of  the  product  of  their 
labor;  and  to  that  extent  are  they  his  servants  or 
slaves.  And  it  is  because  men  are  thus  enabled 
to  make  their  money  take  their  places  in  the 
field  of  labor,  and  earn  money  for  them,  that  s  o- 
ciety  is  outraged. 

In  other  words,  instead  of  a  man  himself  work- 
ing to  produce  something  which  shall  be  of  value 
to  society,  in  return  for  which  he  would  be  en- 
titled to  receive  from  society  the  necessaries  and 
comforts  of  life,  he  loans  his  money  or  property 
to  his  neighbors,  on  condition  of  their  doing  his 
share  of  work  for  him  ;  or,  in  other  words,  con- 
tributing to  him  a  portion  of  the  product  of  their 
labor.  He  need  do  no  labor  ;  he  need  not  produce  a 
single  thing  of  value  to  society ;  he  need  not  ex- 
pend a  cent  of  his  money .;  and  yet  may  receive 
food  and  clothing  and  all  the  necessaries  and  lux- 
uries of  life. 


29 

And  he  may  again  loan  a  portion  of  what  he 
receives  to  other  persons  on  the  same  terms,  and 
thus  increase  his  revenues,  so  that  the  next 
year  he  will  be  able  to  Joan  a  still  larger  amount ; 
and  his  estate  may  thus  compound  itself,  until 
within  his  own  life  it  shall  embrace  the  h  omes  of 
a  thousand  families,  each  of  whom  pays  tribute  to 
him. 

If  a  man  shall  acquire  property  worth  $10,000, 
and  shall  rent  it  so  as  to  receive  a  net  income  of 
8  per.  cent  per  annum,  payable  semi-animally, 
and  shall  each  half  year  invest  the  income  in 
property  which  will  yield  him  the  same  rate  of 
income,  at  the  end  of  fifty  years  his  property 
will  be  worth  $500,000,  instead  of  the  $10,000 
which  he  originally  had — all  without  his  doing 
a  stroke  of  work !  And  this  does  not  take  into 
consideration  any  increase  in  the  value  of  the 
property.  The  $490,000  has  been  earned  by  his 
tenants  and  paid  him  as  rent.  In  a  hundred 
years,  "the  amount  would  be  almost  incalculable. 

And  in  this  manner  have  all  great  fortunes 
boon  accumulated.  They  are  never  earned. 
They  could  not  be  No  man  could  ever  grow 


30 

rich  by  the  ordinary  product  of  labor.     And  there 
must  be  some  reason  for  the  growth  of  large  fort- 
unes   which    is  not  grounded  in  justice ;  for    if 
they  be  not  earned  they  are    not  justly  held. 
They  are,  it  is  true,  generally  begun  in  industry 
and  frugality ;  but  they  grow  from  other  causes 
It  is  a  singular  fact  that  not  one  dollar  of  the  pres- 
ent fortunes  of  Vanderbilt,   of  Gould,  or  of  the 
Astors,  has  been  earned  by  the  possessors.     The 
original,  which  was  earned,  has  been  long  since 
spent;  and  those  fabulous  fortunes  to-day  are  en- 
tirely composed  of  moneys  received  either  as  rent, 
interest  or  dividends.     By  this  is  meant  that  if 
there  had  been  neither  of  those  means  of  supply, 
those  fortunes  would  not  be  in  existence  to-day. 

And  it  is  the  experience  of  Europe,  and  Amer- 
ica as  well,  that  when  great  fortunes  are  once 
accumulated,  their  net  incomes  are  so  great  that 
however  profligate  the  owners  may  be,  the  fort- 
unes themselves  endure  and  continually  enlarge 
themselves. 

And  the  fact  that  some  people  have  more  than 
they  need,  or  more  than  their  share,  shows  that 
others  have  less  than  they  need  and  less  than 


31 

their  share.  And  the  possession  of  large  means 
is  a  power  which  is  often  used  to  deprive  weaker 
individuals  of  the  fruits  of  their  labor,  and  even 
of  their  political  rights.  The  first  means  robbery  ; 
the  second,  tyranny  and  oppression. 

And  from  these  two  causes,  as  surely  as  light 
flows  from  the  sun,  flow  all  the  social  and  polit- 
ical disturbances  of  our  time.  And  the  power  of 
the  rich  and  the  weakness  of  the  poor,  the  rob- 
ber and  the  victim,  the  tyrant  and  the  slave,  are 
solely  and  directly  the  result  of  money  being  al- 
lowed to  earn  money.  The  power  should  not 
exist  in  one  man  to  oppress  another,  and  it  could 
not  exist  if  no  man  received  anything  but  that 
which  he  has  earned  by  his  labor. 


VI. 

It  becomes,  then,  necessary  to  consider  whether 
a  man  .who  is  possessed  of  property  or  money 
should  be  permitted  to  rent  or  loan  the  same  for 
a  consideration  ;  and  whether  society  has  a  right 
to  restrain  him  in  order  to  preserve  itself.  In 


32 

other  words,  whether  money  should  be  permitted 
to  earn  money ;  whether  the  man  who  owes  to 
society  his  due  proportion  of  the  labor  necessary 
to  sustain  it,  may  refuse  to  work,  and  may  com- 
pel others  to  do  his  work  ;  whether  he  may  receive 
the  necessaries  and  luxuries  of  life  which  have 
been  produced  by  others,  without  giving  to  so- 
ciety a  proper  return  therefor. 

The  only  right  which  a  man  can  morally  or 
naturally  have  in  property  is  that  which  is  due 
him  for  having  produced  or  earned  it.  And  the 
question  arises  :  What  is  a  proper  and  complete 
reward  for  labor  ?  If  a  man  shall  do  a  day's  labor, 
to  what  is  he  entitled?  And  what  would  be  full 
pay  for  his  labor  ?  Clearly  he  is  entitled  to  the 
possession,  use  and  enjoyment  of  that  which  he 
has  produced  ;  and  nothing  more  and  nothing  less. 
Or  he  may  exchange  his  product,  or  a  portion  of 
it,  for  an  equal  amount  of  the  product  of  another 
man's  labor  ;  or,  he  may  sell  his  product  or  a  por- 
tion of  it,  and  receive  money  instead,  which  he 
may  more  conveniently  keep  ;  and  he  may  ex- 
change the  money,  as  he  may  desire,  for  the  prop- 
er amount  of  the  product  of  the  labor  of  others. 


The  money  is  not  value ;  it  is  simply  a  certificate 
that  the  bearer  has  contributed  to  society  the  prod- 
uct of  so  much  labor,  and  is  entitled  on  demand 
to  an  equal  amount  of  product  of  labor.  And  these 
privileges  constitute  a  complete  reward  for  labor. 
So  that  if  a  man  shall  by  labor  have  produced  value 
or  property,  and  is  given  the  right  to  enjoy  it  or 
exchange  it,  or  keep  it  for  sickness  or  old  age,  he 
can  ask  no  more  of  society. 

And  if  he  shall  claim  the  further  right  to  lease 
his  property  or  lend  his  money,  for  rent  or  inter- 
est, society  may  deny  him  that  right,  if  it  be 
found  that  it  tends  to  make  one  man  the  slave  of 
another;  to  give  one  class  immense  riches  and 
another  class  great  misery ;  to  subvert  the  objects 
of  free  government  and  destroy  the  strength  and 
unity  of  society. 

VII. 

It  has,  however,  been  argued  that  rent  and  in- 
terest are  just  and  proper.  And  some  authors  of 
works  on  political  economy  have  written  long 


34 

chapters  to  show  that  while  rent  and  interest,  as 
a  whole,  produced  bad  results,  there  was  yet  a 
distinction  to  be  made  between  certain  portions- 
one  portion  being  proper  and  just  and  the  other 
spurious  and  unjust.  It  would  seem  that  these 
writers  realized  the  evil  without  understanding 
the  cause;  and,  having  based  their  arguments 
upon  error,  they  were  led  into  a  labyrinth  from 
which  their  reason  could  not  rescue  them ;  and 
the  science  of  political  economy  has  thus  been  left 
in  a  most  unsatisfactory  and  incomprehensible 
state.  When,  if  a  proper  basis  be  found,  the  science 
would  be  simple  enough ;  for  truth  is  simplicity 
itself. 

Let  us  then  see  where  the  difficulty  really  lies. 
If  one  man  shall  loan  another  $100  for  a  month, 
the  borrower  is  certainly  under  some  obligation 
for  the  accommodation.  This  obligation  may  re- 
main until  the  lender  shall  borrow  $100  for  a 
month  of  the  former  borrower  Supposing  both 
loans  to  be  promptly  paid,  each  party  would  have 
granted  and  received  a  favor,  and  the  account 
would  in  all  respects  be  squared  and  settled. 

But  it   often  happens  that  a  man  who  borrows 


35 

is  not  always  able  to  return  the  favor  in  kind; 
and  it  also  often  happens  that  the  lender  does 
not  require  a  loan  in  return.  In  such  case,  the 
usual  way  to  discharge  the  obligation  which  the 
borrower  is  under  is  for  him  to  give  to  the 
lender  a  bonus  as  interest  on  the  money.  As  a 
business  transaction,  the  whole  thing  would  seem 
equitable  enough,  provided  the  interest  be  not 
excessive ;  yet  right  in  this  little  germ  lies  all 
the  virus  which  poisons  the  whole  social  system. 
Neighborly  kindnesses  make  men  better;  but  when 
borrowing  becomes  a  habit,  and  lending  becomes 
a  business,  society  has  started  in  the  well-beaten 
path  which  leads  to  poverty  and  servitude  on  the 
one  hand,  and  riches  and  power  on  the  other. 

When  a  man  wants  something  which  he  has 
not,  the  proper  course  is  for  him  to  make  the 
thing  which  he  wants,  or  make  something  which 
he  can  exchange  for  that  which  he  wants.  In 
other  words,  if  a  man  wants  anything,  let  him 
earn  it,  and  not  borrow  it. 

Borrowing  is  the  bane  of  the  world  to-day. 
It  is  a  weakness  of  human  nature.  If  a  man 
can  borrow  that  which  some  one  else  has  made, 


36 

he  won' t  make  it  himself.  If  a  man  needs  a  loaf 
of  bread,  he  ought  to  earn  it;  but  he  will  borrow 
it  instead,  if  he  can.  If  a  man  needs  a  suit  of 
clothes,  he  ought  to  earn  it ;  but  he  won't  if  he 
can  buy  it  on  credit,  which  is  simply  borrowing 
its  value.  If  a  man  wants  a  house,  he  ought  to 
build  one,  or  earn  the  money  to  build  it.  But  he 
won' t  if  he  can  borrow  one.  A  man  going  into 
business  will  borrow  a  store  to  put  his  goods  in, 
and  even  borrow7  the  goods.  A  man  who  wants  a 
home  will  borrow  the  money  to  buy  it.  If  a  re- 
ligious association  wants  a  church,  they  borrow 
the  money  to  build  it.  If  a  county  wants  a  court 
house,  the  people  borrow  one;  that  is,  they  borrow 
the  money  to  buy  one.  If  a  state  runs  behind 
hand,  it  borrows  money  to  catch  up.  If  a  nation 
goes  to  war,  it  borrows  the  guns  and  ammunition 
to  fight  with ;  that  is,  it  borrows  the  money  to 
buy  them.  And  it  borrows  the  provisions  and 
clothing  for  the  soldiers,  in  the  same  way.  If  a 
railroad  has  been  operated  at  a  loss,  it  borrows 
money  to  make  up  the  deficiency,  and  pay  divi- 
dends to  stock-holders ;  if  it  wants  to  add  a  few 
miles  of  railway,  it  borrows  the  money  to  build 


37 

it ;  if  it  wants  new  cars  and  engines,  it  borrows 
them. 

And  the  craze  goes  on.  Borrow !  Borrow ! 
Don't  work !  Borrow.  Don't  raise  wheat !  Borrow 
the  wheat  which  some  one  else  has  raised !  Don't 
build  a  house  to  live  in !  Borrow  one  which  is  al- 
ready built !  Don't  reclaim  wild  land  to  make  a 
farm !  Borrow  one  which  is  already  reclaimed  ! 

And  so  it  goes.  Men  and  corporations,  cities, 
counties,  States  and  nations  are  madly  borrow- 
ing. Three-fourths  of  the  world  are  eyes  deep 
in  debt  to  the  other  fourth.  And  they  not  only 
owe  that  fourth  the  debt,  but  are  under  heavy 
obligations  for  the  accommodation  And  this  ob- 
ligation is  a  never-ending  one,  and  involves  the 
lifelong  servitude  and  ignominy  of  the  borrowers. 

Then  why  do  people  borrow  ?  Because  they  are 
weak,  or  unfortunate,  or  lazy,  or  thriftless  ?  No, 
not  entirely ;  it  is  because  they  can  borrow ;  be- 
cause there  are  people  willing  and  anxious  to  lend, 
and  because  it  is  easier  to  borrow  than  to  earn. 
People  are  perpetually  taking  the  shortest  method 
to  secure  that  which  they  wish.  They  simply 
will  not  calculate  the  consequences. 


38 

And  the  natural  result  is  that  society  loses  its 
equilibrium.  The  load  is  all  on  one  side.  •  The 
borrowers  grow  poor;  become  degraded;  and 
finally  degenerate  into  a  condition  of  servitude. 
The  lenders,  profiting  by  the  weakness  of  their 
fellowmen,  gain  what  they  lose.  One  class  gets 
poor,  and  the  other  gets  rich.  One  class  does  all 
the  work,  and  the  other  does  all  the  resting. 

And  the  real  remedy  must  be  one  which  will 
prevent  this  condition  of  a  borrowing  and  a  lend- 
ing class  It  must  protect  the  people  from  the 
temptations  which  are  held  out  to  them  to  enter 
into  a  state  of  bondage.  It  must  teach  them  to 
earn  and  not  borrow.  On  the  other  hand,  it  should 
remove  the  incentive  for  loaning  which  now  ex- 
ists ;  and  as  this  incentive  lies  in  the  profit  which 
is  received,  the  remedy  should  be  a  law  prohibit- 
ing the  profit. 

The  effect  of  this  condition  is  an  unequal  dis- 
tribution of  labor,  and  as  depriving  the  rich  of  the 
means  of  living  without  labor,  except  by  spending 
their  money,  must  inevitably  finally  result  in  caus- 
ing them  to  do  their  share  of  the  labor,  and  thus 
remove  the  cause  of  grievance  ;  it  becomes  neces- 


39 

sary  to  consider  the  sources  from  which  the  rich 
derive  the  means  of  living  without  labor  And 
we  readily  find  that  it  is  from  the  profits  which 
they  receive  from  the  borrowers  for  the  use  of 
the  money  or  property  which  is  loaned. 


VIII. 

The  sources  from  which  the  idle  classes  derive 
their  revenues  may  be  generally  classed  under 
three  heads — 

1.  RENT  OF  LANDS  AND  HOUSES. 

2.  INTEREST  ON  MONEY. 

3.  DIVIDENDS  ON  STOCKS. 

The  methods  by  which  these  sources  of  supply 
may  be  cut  off  are  as  follows  : 

FIRST — By  the  passage  of  an  act  providing  that 
after  twenty  years  from  the  date  of  its  passage,  no 
rent,  profit  or  benefit  of  any  kind  shall  be  paid  or 
received  for  the  use  of  lands  or  houses. 

At  the  end  of  that  time,  a  man  may  still  own 
all  the  property  he  choses.  There  will  be  no 
prohibition  against  it.  If  he  chooses  to  own 


40 

lands  and  houses,  and  leave  them  idle  and  vacant, 
he  can  do  so,  although  he  must  pay  taxes  upon 
them.  But  he  can  receive  no  income  from  them 
except  by  selling  them.  After  the  passage  of  the 
law,  he  would  have  twenty  years  in  which  to  dis- 
pose of  such  lands  and  houses  as  he  could  not  use 
himself.  During  that  period,  he  may  collect  rent 
as  heretofore. 

If  he  shall  sell  his  property  within  the  first  ten 
or  fifteen  years,  he  will  receive  near  its  full  pres- 
ent value.  After  that  time,  the  money  value  will 
decline,  and  he  may  realize  less.  If  he  shall  keep 
his  property  till  the  law  goes  into  effect,  he  can 
still  hold  it,  and  prevent  others  from  using  it, 
although  he  can  receive  no  benefit  from  it  himself, 
except  by  use.  At  that  time,  property  will  have 
lost  the  fictitious  money  value  now  attached  to  it 
by  the  competition  for  investments,  and  will 
have  simply  its  natural  value,  according  to  its 
utility  and  location. 

A  poor  man,  during  the  latter  part  of  the 
twenty  years,  will  have  the  strongest  incentive 
to  be  industrious  and  frugal ;  for  he  would  then 
have  a  home  within  his  reach,  as  a  reward ; 


41 

which  now  he  has  not.  At  the  end  of  the  twenty 
years,  every  man  who  will  may  have  a  home  of 
his  own. 

On  the  other  hand,  the  law  says  to  the  landlord, 
in  effect,  that  he  must  stop  drawing  rent  from  the 
earnings  of  his  tenants ;  in  other  words,  that  he 
must  not  own  the  homes  of  others ;  that  he  can 
no  longer  be  a  landlord.  But  that  in  order  to  do 
him  no  injustice,  he  shall  have  twenty  years  in 
which  to  make  terms  with  the  tenants,  whereby 
they  shall  have  the  property  at  the  end  of  the 
term.  If  he  shall  not  sell  his  houses  before  that 
time,  they  will  be  a  burden  upon  his  hands  until 
he  does ;  for  the  taxes  will  have  to  be  paid 
And  as  he  will  have  no  income,  he  will  have  no 
means  of  paying  them.  Hence,  he  will  have  no 
reason  for  keeping  the  property,  but  will  have 
every  incentive  to  get  it  off  his  hands  at  the  best 
price  possible. 

While  for  years  the  tenant  will  have  had  be- 
fore him  a  prospect,  a  certainty  of  owning  his 
home,  if  he  will  be  frugal  and  industrious.  There 
will  be  every  incentive  for  him  to  do  so.  And 
with  such  a  strong  incentive  on  each  side,  every 


42 

tenant  ought  to  be  able  to  become  possessed  of  a 
home  of  his  own. 

The  result  of  this  law  would  be  to  abolish 
landlordism  and  tenantry.  The  $2,000,000,000 
net  which  the  tenants  have  yearly  paid  to  land- 
lords in  the  United  States  alone,  and  which  has 
gone  to  support  the  landlords  in  idleness  and 
luxury,  will  be  left  with  the  tenants ;  and  they 
can  devote  it  to  beautifying  their  homes,  fertiliz- 
ing and  improving  their  farms,  educating  their 
children,  and  resting  a  little  themselves. 

The  land  will  be  full  of  homes.  Every  man 
will  be  a  deeply  interested  citizen,  anxious  for 
honest  government;  every  man  will  be  a  patriot, 
and  love  the  land  where  he  has  a  home,  and  with 
whose  interests  his  own  will  be  indissolubly  united. 

SECOND — By  the  passage  of  an  act  providing 
that  from  and  after  five  years  after  its  passage,  no 
interest,  profit  or  benefit  of  any  kind  shall  be 
paid  or  received  for  the  use  of  money  loaned  after 
the  passage  of  the  act. 

This  would,  of  course,  abolish  mortgages,  trust 
deeds,  notes,  guaranties,  etc.  It  would  abolish 
money-sharks,  Shylocks,  foreclosures,  protests, 


43 

and  the  word  Debt  would  be  practically  wiped 
from  the  language.  The  worry  and  anxiety  of 
the  man  who  owes  and  cannot  pay,  would  be 
saved  to  society.  The  earnings  of  a  family  would 
not  be  taken  out  of  them  year  after  year,  as 
interest,  and  their  home  finally  taken  from  them, 
and  they  turned  out.  It  would  abolish  doing 
business  on  borrowed  capital ;  but  it  would  not 
injure  true  commerce.  The  merchant  who  owed 
nothing,  and  owned,  not  only  his  stock,  but  his 
store  building  and  the  ground  as  well,  would 
certainly  do  a  healthier  and  safer  business,  and 
on  a  smaller  profit,  than  one  who  was  not  only 
paying  rent  for  his  store  house  and  the  land,  but 
paying  interest  on  his  stock  of  goods  as  well. 

The  time  for  the  operation  of  the  law  against 
interest  is  shorter  than  that  of  the  law  against 
rent,  as  the  money  would  not  decrease  in  value, 
while  the  real  estate  would.  The  owner  of  real 
estate  is  given  a  larger  period,  so  that  he  may 
have  a  chance  to  dispose  of  his  property  without 
loss. 

THIRD — By  the  passage  of  an  act  repealing  all 
laws  under  which  corporations,  other  than  municipal, 


44 

are  organized,  and  prohibiting  their  future  organiza- 
tion. 

A  full  discussion  of  this  branch  will  not  be  un- 
dertaken here,  inasmuch  as  it  is  reserved  for  a 
separate  and  special  volume.  But  it  may  be  said 
that  the  objection  to  corporations  which  is  most 
relevant  to  the  question  under  discussion,  is  that 
they  give  an  opportunity  for  people  to  invest  their 
money,  and  receive  an  income  from  it  upon  which 
they  may  live  without  work. 

First,  we  have  the  stock-holders,  who  must  be 
paid  dividends  amounting  to  from  five  to  seven 
per  cent  upon  their  investments.  The  amount 
of  railway  stocks  in  the  United  States  is  about 
$2,500,000,000  !  upon  which  there  is  paid  year- 
ly about  $125,000, 000  as  dividends! 

And  then  we  have  the  bond-holders,  who  must 
be  paid  their  interest,  first  of  all.  There  is  a  bond- 
ed debt  upon  railways  in  the  United  States  of  about 
$2,000,000,000;  upon  which  there  is  annually 
paid  about  $125, 000, 000  interest;  thus  making  a 
total  of  $250,000,000,  or  $4,000  for  every  mile, 
which  the  railways  of  the  United  States  must  earn 
every  year,  over  and  above  their  opera  ting  expenses ! 


45 

And  the  way  they  earn  it  is  by  charging  it  in 
freights  and  fares.  Who  pays  the  money  ?  The 
producers,  the  laborers  of  the  country.  Who  get 
it  ?  The  idlers,  the  barnacles,  the  aristocrats,  the 
blood-suckers  of  this  country  and  of  Europe. 
The  farmer  pays  more  freight  on  his  produce  than 
he  should,  and  hence  gets  less  for  it ;  and  he  pays 
more  than  he  should  for  his  manufactured  goods, 
because  he  has  to  pay  this  extra  freight. 

But  that  is  not  all.  The  manufacturing  corpo- 
rations of  the  United  States  pay  in  dividends 
over  $800,000,000  a  year!  Who  does  it  come 
out  of?  The  producers.  Who  does  it  go  to?  The 
idlers,  the  aristocrats,  the  blood-suckers.  Aye  ! 
"  Blood-suckers  ' '  is  indeed  the  word  !  Every 
dollar  of  that  $800,000,000  is  paid  as  a  tax  by 
the  consumers.  They  simply  pay  that  much 
more  for  what  they  buy  than  they  would  have  to 
pay  if  there  were  no  stockholders  to  be  support- 
ed at  their  expense. 

And  the  abolishment  of  corporations  would 
not  interrupt  nor  injure  trade.  For  if  there  is  a 
man  who  wants  a  coat,  there  will  be  found  a  man 
to  make  it  for  him.  There  will  be  just  as  many 


46 

coats  worn,  and  there  will  be  just  as  many  coats 
manufactured,  without  corporations  as  with  them. 
There  will  be  just  as  much  bread  eaten  ;  and 
there  will  be  just  as  much  wheat  raised.  There 
will  be  just  as  much  sugar  consumed,  and  just  as 
much  raised.  Wherever  there  is  a  want  it  will 
be  supplied. 


IX. 

The  effect  of  the  abolition  of  money  earning 
money,  or  income  without  work,  could  not  but  be 
beneficial  to  the  community.  In  no  respect  could 
it  be  harmful.  It  would  be  simply  saying  to  the 
rich : 

"  You  have  your  money  and  property.  You 
:*  may  keep  it,  because  we  have  no  right  nor  wish 
"to  take  it  from  you.  But  you  shall  not  make 
;iyour  neighbor  pay  you  for  the  privilege  of 
"  living  in  a  house,  nor  for  tilling  the  soil.  What- 
"  ever  you  want  you  may  spend  of  your  hoard  to 
•'buy.  But  you  shall  not  keep  your  money  and 
' '  draw  immense  sums  from  those  who  work,  and 


47 

"  who  would  have  to  work  doubly  hard  in  order  to 
"  support  you.  Spend  your  money  when  and 
"  how  you  will.  And  when  it  is  all  gone,  go  to 
"  work  and  earn  more,  like  a  man,  and  don't  ask 
"society  to  support  you  like  a  pauper." 

Is  there  anything  unfair  or  unjust  in  that  ?  We 
are  not  rash  nor  sudden  about  it  We  give  them 
five  years'  notice  in  "respect  to  money  loaned  out, 
and  twenty  in  respect  to  real  property.  The 
present  generation  of  the  rich  will  probably  not 
be  able  to  spend  what  they  have ;  but  as  sure  as 
the  sun  shines,  they,  or  their  descendants,  must 
sooner  or  later  "  doff  the  sparkling  cloak  and  fall 
to  work  with  peasant  heart  and  arm." 

And    how   much    more   real   happiness    there 
will  be  in  life  for  them  when  they  sweeten  their 
pleasures  by  earning  them  !  How  much  more  con- 
tented they  will  be  in  knowing  that  they  are  hon- 
estly earning  what  they  get ! 

The  rich  are  really  in  a  degraded  positio  n  to- 
day. A  man  who  lives  by  rents  and  mortgages 
and  bonds,  cannot  have  the  generous  impulses,  the 
liberality  and  true  nobility,  nor  the  appetite,  nor 
he  conscience,  of  the  man  who  has  honestly  earned 


48 

every  dollar  he  has  received.  The  rich  need  to 
be  elevated  from  their  debasement  as  paupers, 
supported  at  the  public  expense,  to  a  position  of 
honest  independence,  to  know  the  sweetness  of 
the  bread  that  is  earned  by  work. 

The  prohibition  of  money  earning  money  would 
give  the  working  man  a  chance  for  civilization  ;  a 
chance  for  education ;  a  chance  to  have  better 
manners,  better  tastes  and  a  better  nature  ;  a 
chance  to  dress  respectably;  a  chance  to  be  a  fit 
companion  for  any  other  man;  which  he  is  not  to- 
day. And  when  the  present  bondholder  and 
rent-eater  shall  have  spent  his  capital,  and  begun 
to  earn  his  bread,  he  will  be  given  a  chance  for 
an  appetite  and  a  conscience ;  a  chance  for  phys- 
ical and  mental  vigor ;  a  chance  for  better  tastes, 
better  manners  and  a  better  nature  ;  a  chance  to 
become  a  fit  companion  for  any  other  man ;  which 
he  is  not  to-day. 

Another  effect  will  be  the  equal  Distribution  of 
labor.  No  man  being  able  to  make  other  people 
earn  his  bread,  will,  perforce,  have  to  earn  it 
himself.  And  as  every  man  in  society  will  be 
doing  a  part  of  the  labor  which  is  necessary  to 


49 

support  society,  the  work  will  necessarily  be  more 
generally  distributed.  And  if  every  man  shall 
work,  no  one  man  need  work  more  than  five  or 
six  hours  a  day.  The  remainder  of  his  time  may 
then  be  devoted,  as  it  should  be,  to  such  uses  as 
will  add  happiness  and  peace,  not  only  to  his  life, 
but  to  all  society. 

Work  is  not  a  terror,  except  to  those  who  have 
been  educated  to  fear  it.  Take  a  young  man 
brought  up  with  no  other  prospect  than  to  earn 
by  work  the  bread  he  eats  and  the  clothes  he 
wears,  and  he  will  be  a  man  who  loves  to 
work,  and  who  loves  to  live,  because  he  has  a 
right  to  live.  He  feels  conscious  that  he  has  a 
right  to  what  he  eats  and  what  he  wears ;  that 
that  right  came  by  having  earned  it.  'Such  a  man  is 
proud,  not  only  of  living,  but  of  working. 

But  take  the  man  who  is  overworked ;  who 
works  every  day  but  Sunday,  from  seven  in  the 
morning  till  six  or  eight  or  ten  at  night ;  and  goes 
home  with  barely  enough  money  to  buy  bread 
and  pay  rent  for  that  day,  and  labor  does  in- 
deed seem  hard  to  him.  But  it  is  because  he  is 
doing  somebody  else's  work  as  well  as  his  own  ; 


50 

and   his    holidays    and   his    hours    of    rest    are 
monopolized  by  that  somebody  else. 

To  that  somebody  else  labor  seems  positively 
dreadful !  To  work,  with  that  somebody  else, 
would  be  to  die.  An  indolent  dandy,  who  sleeps 
all  day  and  carouses  or  dawdles  aU  night ;  who 
has  every  convenience  and  luxury  that  money 
can  buy,  and  cannot  enjoy  them  ;  who  grows  to 
despise  life,  and  is  tired  of  everything  and  in- 
capable of  enjoyment,  because  he  has  never 
earned  it — to  him  work  is  a  terror.  He  has 
that  poor  laborer  s  holidays  and  hours  of  rest.  Oh  ! 
how  the  laborer  would  enjoy  them  !  And  how 
the  dandy  despises  them  !  The  laborer  does  his 
work.  He  does  the  laborer's  resting.  Wouldn't 
a  fair  distribution  of  the  work  and  rest  make 
them  both  happier  and  better  ? 

And  after  all,  wealth  is  nothing  more  than  im- 
munity from  labor.  A  man  who  possesses  a 
great  amount  of  the  product  of  useful  labor,  may 
lie  idle  and  supply  his  wants  by  exchanging  the 
product  which  he  has  for  that  which  he  requires. 
A  man  who  has  no  product,  having  nothing  to 
exchange,  must  supply  his  wants  by  producing 


51 

by  labor  that  which  he  requires,  or  something 
which  he  can  exchange  for  that  which  he  requires. 
The  rich  man  derives  no  other  benefit  from  his 
stores  of  gold  than  the  knowledge  and  satisfac- 
tion that  he  can  get  what,  he  wants  without  labor. 
If  he  shall  have  acquired  his  gold  by  his  own 
labor ;  if  he  shall  have  produced  something  which 
is  of  equal  value  to  society  with  that  which  his 
gold  will  buy  him,  then  there  is  no  wrong.  But 
if  he  gets  his  gold  without  labor,  and  continues 
to  get  it  without  labor,  then  there  is  a  wrong  done 
to  society. 


X. 


By  the  operation  of  the  proposed  laws,  th< 
present  large  fortunes  would  be  deprived  of  their 
power  to  magnify  themselves ;  and,  unless  their 
owners  shall  earn  all  the  money  they  spend,  the 
fortunes  must  at  once  begin  to  decrease  and 
scatter. 

And  then,  too,  luxurious  and  extravagant  living 
would  be  less  indulged  in ;  for  people  whose  stores 


52 

are  lessened  by  every  expense,  will  be  less  prod- 
igal and  wasteful  than  when  they  are  spending 
only  the  income,  and  perhaps  not  all  of  that ;  and 
when  their  principal,  if  it  be,  for  instance,  land,  is 
growing  in  value  all  the  time.  If  a  man  have  a 
million  dollars  in  land  from  which  he  derives  an 
income  of  $50,000,  and  his  land  is  growing  in 
value  all  the  time,  he  will  freely  spend  the  whole 
or  nearly  the  whole  of  that  $50,000  in  gratifying 
his  tastes  and  fancy.  But  if  he  have  a  million 
dollars  in  money,  from  which  he  receives  no  in- 
come, and  every  dollar  he  spends  lessens  his  prop- 
erty, he  will  not  freely  spend  $50,000  a  year. 
He  will  halt  before  he  gratifies  his  luxurious 
fancy ;  and  he  will  find  it  convenient  and  agreea- 
ble to  live  in  a  simpler  and  perhaps  more  enjoya- 
ble style,  and  spend  f  5,000  or  $10,000  a  year. 
And  if  his  investment  be  in  land  from  which  he 
can  receive  no  income,  and  upon  which  he  must 
pay  taxes,  he  will  have  no  money  to  spend  lavish- 
ly in  the  gratification  of  his  tastes.  And  thus 
there  will,  at  least,  be  less  extravagance. 

But  if  he  choose  to  be  extravagant,  society  will 
at  least  know  that  it  is  at  his  own  expense,   and 


53 

that  a  thousand  or  more  people  are  not  working 
extra  hours  to  contribute  to  the  means  for  living 
such  a  life.  And  his  fortune  will  continually  grow 
less,  until  either  he  or  his  children  must  rise  from 
their  degradation  and  humiliation  to  the  honora- 
ble and  exalted  position  of  earning  what  they  get, 
and  instead  of  being  pampered  paupers,  become 
worthy  and  deserving  citizens. 

We  may  not  be  able  to  do  away  with  every 
means  by  which  money  earns  money  ;  neither  can 
we  prevent  larceny  and  murder.  But  we  can  do 
what  we  can.  It  is  some  satisfaction  to  know 
that  we  can  do  something.  We  may  not  be  able 
to  absolutely  prevent  the  amassing  of  great  wealth. 
Men  may  make  it  in  trade  or  mining.  But  we 
may  prevent  such  wealth  from  becoming  a  burden 
upon  society;  and  we  may  do  so  without  robbing 
a  man  of  a  single  right. 

If  a  man  has  done  a  dollar's  worth  of  labor,  he 
is  entitled  to  the  result  of  that  labor ;  or  to  ex- 
change it  for  the  result  of  the  same  amount  of 
some  other  man's  labor.  Society  owes  him  no 
further  debt  And  when  he  has  spent  that  dol- 
lar, he  must  go  to  work  again.  However,  if  he 


54 

is  thrifty  and  saving,  he  may  not  spend  but  50  or 
75  cents  before  he  will  earn  another  dollar ;  and 
he  may  save  50  or  25  cents  out  of  that.  And 
thus  he  may  accumulate  money  for  his  old  age — 
and  he  will,  if  he  be  prudent  and  provident. 

And  it  is  proper  that  he  should  lay  by  a  certain 
portion  of  his  income  for  that  purpose.  Society 
does  not  object  to  this — it  demands  it ;  for  it 
does  not  wish  a  man  in  his  dotage  to  become  a 
charge  upon  it 

But  society  does  object  to  his  loaning  out  his 
savings  and  living  off  from  the  income  ;  for  then 
he  is  keeping  his  money  and  making  others  work 
to  support  him  in  idleness ;  and  when  he  dies, 
some  one  else  draws  the  income,  and  is  in  turn 
supported  in  idleness  by  the  labor  of  others ;  and 
so  on  endlessly.  A  man  may  provide  for  old  age 
without  buying  a  right  to  be  supported  at  the 
expense  of  his  neighbors. 

True,  if  a  man  ^an  arrange  to  receive  an  income 
from  his  money  sufficient  to  support  him  without 
impinging  upon  the  principal,  he  will  feel  like  quit- 
ting work  somewhat  sooner  than  if  his  principal 
were  alone  to  be  his  source  of  supply.  But  society 


55 

can  stand  it  better  to  have  him  continue  to  work, 
as  long  as  he  can  conveniently,  to  support  him- 
self, than  to  have  others  work  to  support  him. 
And  if  once  in  awhile  a  man  should  quit  work 
too  soon,  and  his  principal  should  be  all  gone 
before  death,  it  is  to  be  hoped  that  he  has  been 
kind  and  considerate  enough  of  his  friends  or 
relatives  to  move  them  to  care  for  him  in  his  few 
remaining  years,  if  he  cannot  do  so  by  his  own 
labor.  But  let  the  consequence  of  such  an  event 
rest  where  it  belongs — either  upon  the  man  for 
not  properly  providing  for  his  old  age ;  or  upon 
his  descendants,  if  he  shall  be  without  blame  in 
this  respect;  and  failing  both,  then  upon  society. 
The  mere  fact  that  it  is  pleasant  and  conven- 
ient and  nice  to  think  that  when  one  has  $100,000 
he  can  loan  it  out  so  as  to  give  him  $5,000  per  year 
as  long  as  he  lives,  without  decreasing  his  capital ; 
and  can  then  by  will  give  it  to  some  one  else 
who  never  did  a  stroke  of  work  to  deserve  it,  but 
who  will  draw  the  $5,000  per  year,  and  so  on 
endlessly,  will  hardly  justify  society  in  permit- 
ting him  in  his  old  age,  and  his  successor  in  his 
young  and  old  age  both,  and  his  successor's 


56 

successor,  and  so  on  forever,  to  be  supported  in 
idleness  at  society's  expense. 

But  even  as  it  is,  men  who  have  invested  their 
capital  and  retired  have  no  certainty  of  not  being 
left  helpless  in  old  age.  If  they  invest  in  lands 
or  in  mortgages,  the  title  may  prove  defective. 
If  invested  in  stocks,  the  company  may  become 
bankrupt.  If  in  government  bonds,  their  value 
may  be  destroyed  by  a  revolution  or  war. 

But  a  man  should  not  retire.  In  the  first 
place,  he  should  not  overwork  so  that  he  needs  to 
retire,  and  he  should  ever  continue  to  give  to 
society  some  product  of  his  labor.  He  has  no 
right  to  sit  down  and  do  absolutely  nothing. 
He  will  be  an  honester  and  happier  man  if  he 
devotes  even  his  declining  years  to  some  suitable 
and  beneficial  employment. 

It  may  be  said  that  by  abolishing  the  power  of 
money  to  earn  money,  we  would  deprive  a  man 
of  the  privilege  of  providing  for  his  daughters  in 
the  way  of  dowry,  or  so  that  they  would  not  be 
compelled  to  earn  their  living  if  unmarried.  But 
why  shouldn't  they  work  ?  Why  should  they  be- 
come dreary,  discontented  drones,  living  from  the 


57 

sweat  of  poor  men's  brows  ?  Far  better  let  them 
earn  their  way  in  life.  This  idea  that  a  woman 
who  earns  her  living  is  no  longer  entitled  to  the 
highest  respect,  does  not  exist  in  the  minds  of 
honest  people.  It  is  only  the  thin-bred  aristocracy, 
who  obtain  their  living  as  paupers  do,  who  con- 
sider it  a  dishonor  for  a  woman  to  work. 

But  it  does  not  prevent  the  father  from  provid- 
ing for  his  daughter.  If  he  wishes  to  provide  for 
her  so  that  she  may  not  work,  let  him  plank  his 
cash  down,  put  it  where  she  can  have  it  as  she 
wants  it,  and  let  her  .spend  it  like  an  honest  per- 
son should,  and  not  loan  it  out  like  a  Shylock. 

If  a  man  bequeath  his  son  $100,000,  no  one 
will  complain  if  the  son  spends  it ;  or  if  he  keep 
it  and  earn  by  the  labor  of  mind  or  body  that 
which  he  eats,  wears  or  uses.  But  if  he  loan  the 
money  at  interest,  and  live  in  idleness  from  such 
income,  doing  no  labor,  and  still  keeping  the 
$100,000  intact,  society,  then,  has  a  burden. 

Or  suppose  the  father  shall  leave  his  son  ten 
houses ;  and  the  son  collects  sufficient  rent  from 
the  tenants  to  pay  for  taxes  and  repairs  on  the 
property,  and  to  support 'himself  as  well  in  idle- 


58 

ness;  then,  too,  has  society  a  burden.  It  may  fall 
immediately  upon  the  tenants,  but  they  distribute 
the  burden.  If  they  owned  the  houses,  they 
would  pay  only  the  taxes  and  repairs.  As  they 
have  to  pay  the  landlord  an  additional  sum,  such 
sum  must  be  added  to  their  incomes.  If  the 
landlord  receives  from  one  tenant  $500  a  year  net, 
the  tenant  must  necessarily  earn  that  much  more 
than  if  he  owned  the  house;  and  that  sum  be- 
comes a  charge  upon  his  clients,  customers  or 
employers. 


XI. 

It  is  not  only  the  rich  idlers  who  are  burdens 
upon  society  The  vast  sums  which  they  spend  go 
to  support  a  host  of  servants  and  panderers 
whose  labor  is  entirely  useless  to  society. 

All  labor  which  is  not  necessary  for  the  good  of 
society  may  be  classed  as  useless.  And  under 
this  head  there  are  many  very  honest  hard-work- 
ing people  who  are  as  much  burdens  upon  society 
as  if  they  were  idlers  ;  simply  because  their  labor 


59 

does  not  give  to  society  a  proper  return  for  what 
they  receive  from  society.  With  many  of  these, 
this  book  will  not  undertake  to  interfere. 

The  professions  are  overcrowded.  There  are 
four  lawyers  where  but  one  is  needed  But  the 
three  extra  and  unnecessary  ones  must  be  fed, 
clothed,  housed  and  amused.  Not  one  lawyer  in 
ten  does  as  much  labor  as  he  should.  There  is 
not  enough  business  to  go  around;  but  each  lawyer 
must  receive  enough  fees  to  supply  his  wants, 
so  that  they  charge  upon  three  cases  the  fees 
which  should  have  been  distributed  over  ten. 

The  medical  profession  is  also  overcrowded, with 
nearly  as  bad  results.  And  nearly  every  avoca- 
tion of  life  has  many  members  who  are  much  in- 
debted to  society. 

The  entire  business  of  fire  insurance  is  a  griev- 
ous burden.  Its  object  is  to  distribute  losses 
among  the  premium  payers.  If  the  losses  were 
evenly  and  inexpensively  distributed,  there  might 
be  no  cause  of  complaint,  save  that  it  would  on 
general  principles  be  better  to  prevent  the  loss 
altogether  than  to  half  encourage  it.  But  inas- 
much as  a  vast  amount  of  the  money  which  is  paid 


60 

in  is  used  to  support  in  very  comfortable  style  a 
large  army  of  men  who  might  be  otherwise  more 
profitably  employed,  and  as  but  a,  small  propor- 
tion of  money  is  returned  to  premium  payers,  the 
business  is  a  burden. 

The  cities  are  filled  with  people  who  live,  as  it 
were,  from  the  crumbs  which  fall  from  the  tables 
of  the  rich  ;  and  one  most  beneficial  effect  of  the 
operation  of  these  laws  would  be  to  decrease  the 
population  of  the  large  cities.  As  soon  as  the  rev- 
enues of  the  rich  are  cut  off,  they  will  spend  much 
less  money ;  there  will  be  less  theaters,  less  dry  good 
stores,  less  fancy  stores,  less  fine  jewelry  stores, 
less  costly  merchandise  of  all  kinds,  less  fine 
hotels,  less  livery  stables,  less  flower  gardens,  less 
servants,  and  so  on.  And  those  people  would  in- 
evitably be  distributed  in  the  different  walks  of 
life  where  their  labors  would  redound  to  the 
good  of  society. 

To  illustrate  the  point  in  respect  to  useless 
labor,  let  us  suppose  that  in  a  new  community, 
where  every  one  performed  his  proper  share  of  the 
necessary  work,  some  of  the  people  should  say : 
4 '  We  shall  spend  our  time  in  making  kites,  so 


61 

"  that  each  man  shall  have  one  to  fly  from  his  house 
"top;  and  each  man  shall  give  us  therefor  so 
"  much  grain,  or  so  many  chickens."  The  people 
would  say  :  "  Why,  we  don't  need  kites,  and  we 
"  won't  give  you  grain  or  chickens  for  them.  But 
"if  you  will  come  and  help  harvest  our  grain,  or 
"  make  our  shoes,  or  haul  our  grain  to  the  mill,  we 
"  will  give  you  what  you  ask."  And  the  answer 
would  be  both  pertinent  and  just. 

If  a  man  indulges  in  useless  labor  and  obtains 
nothing  therefor  from  society,  no  food  ib  eat  nor 
clothing  to  wear,  and  no  money  with  which  to  buy 
such  things,  then  society  does  not  suffer.  But,  if 
by  useless  labor  he  gains  food,  or  clothing,  or 
money,  or  means  with  which  to  buy  them,  then 
society  is  the  loser. 

If  a  rich  rnan  shall  employ  men  to  build  for  him 
a  magnificent  mansion,  or  a  great  pleasure  ship ; 
and  pay  them  a  million  dollars  therefor,  he  is  not 
benefiting  society  a  particle — no  more  than  if  he 
had  kept  his  money  in  his  pocket.  In  paying 
them  for  the  work,  he  is,  in  one  sense,  like  a  Poor 
Law  Committee-man,  giving  a  pauper  an  order 
for  bread  which  society  has  to  pay  for. 


62 

A  man  who  builds  a  house,  every  part  of  which 
is  useful,  and  on  which  no  labor  has  been  ex- 
pended in  the  gratification  of  vanity  or  extrava- 
gant fancies,  deserves  pay  for  his  labor. 

But  when  a  rich  man  employs  a  thousand  men 
for  a  year  to  build  him  a  pleasure  yacht,  which 
will  never  in  any  sense  benefit  society,  he  is  not, 
as  may  be  generally  supposed,  doing  a  good  act. 
He  is  parting  with  some  of  his  money  ;  and  it  has 
gone  to  procure  food  for  the  laborers.  True 
enough.  But  think  farther. 

Suppose  the  ship  had  not  been  built;  and  sup- 
pose the  condition  of  society  to  have  been  such 
that  those  men  were  distributed  in  the  various 
walks  of  life — a  due  proportion  raising  food,  oth- 
ers working  as  shoe-makers,  tailors  etc. — each 
earning  what  he  receives,  by  doing  an  equal 
amount  of  work  for  the  man  who  gives  it  to  him. 
What  is  the  difference  ?  In  the  first  place,  society 
furnishes  a  thousand  men  with  food  for  a  year, 
and  gets  nothing  for  it.  In  the  other  case,  the 
thousand  men  raise  their  own  food,  and  socieiy 
neither  loses  nor  gains. 

Again,  suppose  a  nation  should  undertake    to 


63 

build  a  tower  as  great  and  useless  as  the  Tower 
of  Babel.  Suppose  a  million  laborers  were 
employed  at  it  for  fifty  years.  Would  not  the 
farmers  of  that  nation  be  burdened  with  supply- 
ing them  with  food  ?  And  the  tailors  and  weavers 
with  supplying  them  with  clothing  ?  And  so  on. 
In  short,  would  not  the  balance  of  the  nation  be 
compelled  to  work  harder  than  if  those  million 
men  were  employed  in  raising  food,  or  other  use- 
ful labor ;  in  other  words,  supporting  themselves  ? 
If  no  nation  could  borrow  money  there  would 
be  no  wars.  And  how  thankful  humanity  would 
be  !  See  how  madly  England,  France,  Germany, 
Russia,  Spain,  Italy  and  Turkey  are  running  in 
debt!  And  what  is  the  result?  They  pay  in- 
terest to  the  lenders.  For  how  long?  Forever  ! 
And  the  interest  receivers  increase  in  numbers  as 
the  debts  increase.  And  they  are  supported  by 
the  nation.  The  nation  gives  them  the  certifi- 
cates which  entitle  them  to  supplies  from  society. 
And  who  earn  the  supplies  ?  Alas  !  those  who 
labor.  The  more  interest  receivers,  the  more 
the  burden  upon  the  producers.  For  every  man 
who  does  not  raise  food  is  furnished  food  by  those 


64 

who  do ;  every  man  who  does  not  make  clothes  is 
provided  with  clothes  by  those  who  do.  Each 
stone  in  all  the  layers  in  a  pyramid  is  supported 
by  the  lowest  layer,  which  bears  a  grievous 
burden.  The  higher  the  pyramid  the  greater  the 
load.  Every  man  who  is  not  a  producer  is  sup- 
ported by  those  who  are. 

XII. 

It  is  generally  supposed  that  the  rich  men  pay 
the  taxes  which  support  the  different  forms  of 
government — township, county, state  and  national; 
and  they  are  accorded  a  large  degree  of  credit 
therefor,  as  in  that  respect  relieving  the  poor  of 
a  burden.  On  the  surface,  it  does  seem  that  a 
man  who  owns  a  large  amount  of  property  and 
pays  a  large  amount  of  taxes,  does  contribute 
largely  to  the  support  of  the  government ;  and  that 
a  man  who  has  no  taxable  property  and  pays  no 
taxes,  although  he  works  ten  hours  a  day  for 
every  working  day  in  every  year,  does  not  bear 
any  of  the  burdens.  But  itiequires  only  a  little 
thought  to  see  that  such  is  not  the  case. 


65 

What  is  the  government  ?  It  is  simply  a  number 
of  members  of  the  community  or  nation  who  are 
selected  to  see  that  the  rights  of  the  community 
and  of  the  individuals  are  protected.  Inasmuch  as 
these  men  are  engaged  in  useful  and  necessary  work, 
and  thus  prevented  from  raising  their  ownfoodand 
providing  their  own  clothing,  community  must  pro- 
vide those  things  for  them.  Hence,  community 
gives  them  orders,  or  due  bills,  or  money,  or 
whatever  it  may  be  called,  by  means  of  which 
those  men  obtain  the  necessaries  of  life.  But  of 
whom  do  they  obtain  them  ?  Of  the  men  by 
whose  labor  they  were  produced.  The  producers 
take  the  orders  or  money,  and  exchange  them  for 
things  which  they  need  and  have  not  themselves 
produced.  There  is  no  additional  value  in  ex- 
istence. The  orders  or  money  were  mere  repre- 
sentatives, for  the  time  being,  of  value.  But  the 
producers  had  to  work  harder  than  they  would  if 
there  had  been  no  officers  of  the  government,  and 
the  men  who  were  officers  had  been  producers 
themselves  instead.  In  that  event,  they  would 
have  produced  their  own  necessaries,  or  produced 
by  labor  things  which  could  be  exchanged  for 
their  necessaries. 


All  taxes  are  paid  by  those  who  work.  A 
rich  man  who  derives  his  entire  income  from  the 
loaning  of  his  money,  and  who  does  no  work  ex- 
cept looking  after  his  tenants  and  debtors — a  con- 
temptible sort  of  employment,  and  entirely  use- 
less to  community — cannot  be  said  to  pay  a  cent 
of  taxes.  Every  cent  he  receives  somebody 
else  earns ;  and  if  he  pays  some  as  taxes,  it  does 
not  cost  him  a  moment's  labor.  He  simply  gives 
to  the  government  an  order  on  the  producers  for  a 
certain  amount  of  the  necessaries  of  life — gives 
it  money  which  will  buy  them. 

As  a  matter  of  fact,  it  is  not  the  landlord  nor 
the  mortgagee  who  pays  the  taxes.  It  is  the 
tenant  and  the  mortgagor.  The  landlord  requires 
a  net  income  from  his  property  over  and  above 
expenses.  Suppose  the  taxes  were  one  per  cent 
and  repairs  one  per  cent,  and  the  rent  was  eight 
per  cent  on  the  actual  value  of  the  property. 
In  that  case,  the  landlord  gets  six  per  cent  net. 
Suppose,  however,  the  taxes  were  increased  to  ten 
'  per  cent,  and  the  repairs  to  five  per  cent  If  the 
rent  remained  at  eight  per  cent,  the  landlord 
would  be  paying  out  each  year  fifteen  per  cent, 


67 

and  receiving  eight,  a  loss  each  year  of  seven  per 
cent.  If  he  did  no  labor  by  which  he  earned 
anything,  the  sure  result  would  be  a  loss  of  his 
property.  But  the  landlord  would  raise  the  rent  so 
as  to  make  the  tenants  pay  the  taxes  and  repairs, 
and  give  the  landlord  an  income  besides. 

This  income  varies  in  different  localities.  A 
capitalist  prefers  to  have  his  property  as  near 
him  and  as  much  under  his  control  as  possible. 
And  in  communities  where  there  are  many  capi- 
talists, as  in  New  England  and  New  York,  there 
will  be  more  or  less  competition ;  and  they  will 
require  a  less  net.  income  than  when  their  money 
is  loaned  or  their  property  is  located  farther  away. 
And  in  communities  where  there  are  few  capi- 
talists and  little  competition,  proportionately 
higher  net  incomes  will  be  required. 

But  as  a  general  principle,  the  landlord  requires 
a  net  income  from  his  property ;  and  any  expenses 
incident  to  the  property,  in  the  way  of  repairs, 
taxes,  etc.,  really,  although  not  apparently,  come 
out  of  the  tenant  in  the  shape  of  additional  rent ; 
that  is,  he  pays  more  rent  than  he  would  other 
wise  pay,  and  enough  more  to  pay  those  charges. 


68 

So  that  after  all,  all  the  expenses  of  government 
are  paid  by  the  laborers,  and  not  by  the  property 

owners. 

• 

XIII. 

As  an  effective  illustration  of  the  injurious  ef- 
fects which  the  principle  of  money  earning  money 
will  have  upon  a  country,  let  us  look  at  the  re- 
sult in  the  United  States  of  investments  of 
foreigners  in  our  lands  and  securities.  It  is  a 
most  alarming  fact  that  we  send  to  Europe,  and 
chiefly  to  England,  every  year,  three  hundred  mill- 
ions of  dollars  in  money  and  produce  more  than 
we  receive  ! 

What  does  it  mean?  It  means  that  that  amount 
is  paid  yearly  as  rent,  interest  and  dividends  on 
foreign  capital  by  the  producers  of  this  country  I 
And  it  is  not  money  that  is  paid.  It  is  paid  in  the 
brawn  of  our  farmers,  and  at  the  expense  of  the 
fertility  of  our  soil;  for  it  is  paid  in  grain  and  meat 
and  cotton  which  our  farmers  have  labored  to 
produce. 

A  man  who  ships  a  cargo  of  wheat  or  meat  to 


69 

England  draws  a  draft  on  England,  which  a  bank 
here  gives  him  the  money  for.  A  man  who,  as 
the  agent  of  English  capitalists,  wishes  to  make 
a  remittance  to  England  of  moneys  received  as 
rents,  interest  or  dividends,  goes  to  a  bank  here, 
pays  in  his  money  and  gets  a  draft  on  England. 
The  money  stays  here,  while  the  two  drafts  meet 
in  England,  and  balance  each  other,  as  far  as 
their  amounts  may  agree ;  and  no  money  comes 
back  to  pay  us  for  the  produce  !  That  is  England' s 
tribute ! 

Suppose,  by  fortune  of  war,  we  should  be  com- 
pelled to  pay  a  yearly  tribute  to  England  of  three 
hundred  millions  of  dollars  ;  and  that  sum  had  to 
be  raised  by  taxation,  in  addition  to  the  ordinary 
taxes.  How  deeply  and  painfully  we  would 
feel  the  burden!  What  a  grievous  wrong  it  would 
seem  to  be  !  Arid  yet  we  are  carrying  that  burden 
to-day.  It  has  been  imposed  stealthily  ;  but  we 
are  carrying  it  and  paying  it. 

And  why  ?  Because  we  permit  money  to  earn 
money. 

England  gets  her  living  in  that  way  now.  Her 
manufactures  have  made  her  immensely  rich  ;  and 


70 

she  is  now  the  banker  of  the  world.  If  a  poor 
man  here  wants  to  buy  a  home,  he  must  bid 
against  the  English  as  well  as  the  American  cap- 
italist. The  poor  man  wants  it  for  a  home.  The 
capitalists  want  it  to  rent ;  so  that  the  occupant, 
even  though  he  be  a  freeborn  American  citizen, 
must  work  one-fourth  of  his  time  as  their  slave, 
to  support  them.  No  wonder  the  poor  cannot  get 
homes.  No  wonder  real  estate  is  too  high  for 
them. 

The  English  and  Eastern  capitalists  are  fasten- 
ing their  fangs  upon  our  Western  territory.  Why? 
Because  they  know  the  American  people  will  need 
to  use  it  some  day  to  supply  themselves  with  food  ; 
and  then  the  capitalist  will  collect  his  tribute — 
for  how  long  ?  Alas !  forever.  Once  he  gets  it, 
he  never  lets  go.  It  is  from  that  time  forth  slave 
soil.  The  man  who  tills  it  is  not  a  free  man.  He 
is  a  tribute  payer.  He  is  a  man  without  a 
home. 

Home  !  How  sweet  the  name !  The  theme 
of  poets,  the  guardian  of  youth,  the  memory  and 
hope  of  manhood,  the  realization  and  reward  of  in- 
dustry, and  the  comfort  and  solace  of  old  age! 


71 

Home  !  The  creator  and  inspirer  of  patriots !  A 
land  full  of  homes  is  a  land  of  patriots  and  peace. 
A  land  full  of  landlords  and  tenants  is  a  land  of 
discontent  and  treason. 

In  Europe,  and  especially  England,  the  produc- 
ers are  homeless,  as  a  class.  In  this  country,  the 
homes  are  being  seized  upon  by  the  rich.  When- 
ever, by  failure  to  pay  a  mortgage,  or  by  misfort- 
une of  any  kind,  a  home  owner  loses  his  prop- 
erty, the  rich  will  get  it,  because  they  will  pay 
more  for  it  than  a  poor  man  can.  And  there  is  one 
home  less !  And  this  is  going  on,  and  will  go  on, 
till  no  poor  man  or  producer  in  this  country  will 
know  what  the  word  "  home  "  means ;  till  there 
will  not  be  a  working  man  in  all  this  broad  land 
who  will  own  the  roof  he  sleeps  under. 

It  is  time  to  call  a  halt,  and  to  consider  whether 
the  well-being  and  the  very  existence  of  our  free 
institutions  do  not  require  such  a  change  in  our 
laws  as  will  prevent  the  destruction  of  our  homes, 
and  preserve  the  liberty  of  our  citizens. 


XIV. 

The  poverty-stricken  condition  of  the  poor  has 
been  charged  to  their  extravagance  A  most  as- 
tounding proposition !  Has  not  one  man  as  much 
right  to  be  extravagant  with  what  he  earns  as  an- 
other ?  The  poor  man,  with  nothing  but  toil  for  the 
day  and  nothing  but  toil  for  the  morrow — no  hope 
to-day,  no  hope  for  to-morrow  ;  who  earns  a  few 
dimes  and  spends  one  of  them  for  a  drink  or  a  few 
pipes  of  tobacco,  is  charged  with  extravagance ; 
and  reminded  that  if,  for  the  last  thirty  years  or 
so,  he  had  saved  that  dime  a  day,  he  would  have 
been  able  to  buy,  the  Lord  knows  what!  My 
God !  Is  no  one  extravagant  but  the  poor  ?  Are  not 
there  people  who  are  extravagant  with  money  they 
have  not  earned  ?  And  are  they  not  extravagant 
with  the  very  money  these  poor  people  have 
earned  ? 

Human  beings  must  have  relaxation.  The  poor 
drudge  takes  his  in  the  only  place  he  can  find  it ; 
he  is  driven  to  the  place  he  goes  to.  Rot-gut? 
Yes  !  But  he  can't  do  any  better.  Its  the  best 


73 

he  can  get  for  his  money.  True,  he  has,  during 
the  week,  turned  out  work  to  the  community 
worth  thirty  dollars,  but  he  only  received  eight 
dollars.  Who  has  the  rest  ?  The  man  who  can 
afford  to  be  extravagant — who  can  spend  hundred 
dollar  bills  where  the  poor  man  spends  dimes  or 
pennies. 

What  an  unjust  and  narrow  view  to  take  of  the 
question ! 

Do  not  take  from  the  laborer  the  pipe  of  tobac- 
co nor  the  mug  of  beer,  which  he  honestly  earned, 
unless  you  take  from  the  rich  pauper  the  spark- 
ling champagne  or  the  fragrant  cigar,  which  he 
has  not  earned.  The  laborer's  eternal  tension  of 
toil  must  sometimes  be  relaxed;  and  the  severer 
the  toil,  the  more  the  need  of  relaxation. 

The  workingman's  right  to  spend  his  dimes  is 
the  last  mark  of  freedom.  Clad  in  the  habiliments 
of  a  slave  ;  housed  in  the  hut  of  a  slave  ;  fed  with 
the  food  of  a  slave  ;  and  almost  marked  with  the 
brand  of  a  slave,  he  takes  the  poor  privilege  of 
forgetting  for  a  moment  his  serfdom ;  of  drowning 
for  an  hour  the  sorrows  of  the  past,  and  the  des- 
peration of  the  future  ;  to  feel  himself  a  free  man, 


74 

just  for  one  short  evening,  at  the  end  of  a  long, 
dreary,  painful  week  of  toil.  Rob  him  of  that 
right ;  bind  him  to  the  drudgery  and  pain  of 
never-ending  labor,  without  relaxation,  with  no 
hope  of  relief,  and  he  sinks  below  the  level  of  the 
slave. 

Below  the  level  of  the  slave  ?  Aye !  The  slave 
knows  not  care.  His  wife  and  his  children  are 
no  burden  upon  him.  Their  lives  do  not  depend 
on  his  labor.  They  are  cared  for  whether  he 
shall  work  or  not.  But  before  the  working-man's 
eyes  are  the  pallid  faces  and  starving  moans  of 
his  dear  ones.  The  existence  of  all  that  he  loves 
hangs  on  a  slender  thread.  The  week's  earnings 
barely  eke  out  the  week's  expenses.  The  next 
week  he  may  be  sick  ;  or  he  may  be  thrown  out 
of  work.  And  the  last  penny,  and  the  last  loaf 
will  be  gone.  But  the  wife  and  children  will  be 
there,  starving  before  his  eyes,  and  he  utterly 
unable  to  help  them.  And  the  rent-eater  will  be 
there,  grasping,  greedy  and  heartless.  No  won- 
der we  have  criminals.  No  wonder  men  grow 
tired  of  work.  Indeed,  the  workingman  is  often 
worse  off  than  the  slave."  What  little  freedom  he 
has  he  pays  a  fearful  price  for. 


75 

I  do  not  say  he  ought  to  drink  or  smoke.  And 
perhaps  the  money  which  he  spends  in  that  way 
could  be  better  spent.  But  the  immutable  law  of 
Capital  is  that  the  worker,  whether  he  be  a  slave 
or  freeman,  shall  be  allowed,  as  his  portion  of  the 
product,  only  the  means  of  existence.  And  if 
the  free  workman  of  to-day  shall  be  able  to  exist 
without  this  relaxation,  the  mon^y  which  he  uses 
for  that  purpose  will  no  longer  be  given  him. 

The  remedy  does  not  lie  in  preaching  frugality 
and  temperance  to  the  workingman.  It  lies  in 
relieving  his  burdens,  so  that  he  may  have  a 
chance  to  hope,  a  chance  to  live  for  the  future,  a 
chance  for  recreation  in  the  woods  and  parks  in 
the  day  time,  and  not  in  the  saloons  at  night. 

It  is  unjust  to  charge  the  laboring  class  with 
being  rude  and  boorish,  coarse  and  unrefined. 
After  they  have  carried  for  a  few  generations  the 
brunts  and  burdens  of  society,  they  certainly  owe 
no  courtesies  to  their  oppressors  and  have  few  for 
each  other.  Destroy  a  man's  independence  and 
self-respect  ;  wound  his  honor;  bend  his  pride  ;  de- 
prive him  of  hope,  and  give  him  no  stimulant  but 
kicks,  and  no  food  but  crusts ;  no  opportunity  for 


76 

education ;  no  hours  for  recreation  and  rest ;  and 
he  will  surely  lose  his  better  instincts,  his  sense 
of  honor  and  of  justice,  and  will  degenerate  to  the 
level  of  the  brutes.  The  rich  are  responsible  for 
the  degradation  of  the  poor.  They  have  robbed 
and  outraged  them ;  they  have  made  them  crim- 
inals and  brutes  ;  they  have  shackled  and  enslaved 
them.  And  not  from  the  mouths  of  the  rich 
should  come  one  word  of  protest  or  condemnation 
at  the  turbulence,  the  violence  or  the  criminality 
of  the  poor. 

Crime  is  as  rampant  to-day  as  in  the  days  of 
the  fiercest  barbarians.  It  is  because  the  religions 
and  the  laws  have  dealt  with  the  crime  and  not 
with  the  cause.  The  proper  way  to  prevent  crime 
is  to  do  away  with  the  incentive  for  it.  If  a  man 
has  no  motive  to  commit  crime,  he  is  not  likely  to 
become  a  criminal.  It  is  this  everlasting  maw  of 
the  rich,  which,  not  content  with  enough  and 
plenty,  must  take  the  meat  from  the  tables  and 
the  fire  from  the  stoves  of  the  poor,  which  makes 
crime.  It  is  robbery  ;  it  is  taking  property  and 
money  without  moral  right  Human  law  cannot 
make  right  that  which  is  naturally  wrong. 


77 

A  man  with  a  million  dollars,  under  the  present 
system,  can  make  whole  communities  his  slaves  ; 
to  work  when  he  says  work  ;  to  quit  when  he  says 
quit ;  to  eat  when  he  says  eat ;  to  starve  when 
he  says  starve.  And  it  is  because  this  condition 
is  fostered  and  upheld  by  our  laws  that  the  suf- 
ferers thereby  become  outlaws. 

Men  are  driven  to  crime.  If  a  man  can  get 
his  natural  rights  honestly,  he  will  not  be  a 
criminal.  Self-preservation  is  above  all  laws ; 
it  is  an  immutable  fact,  and  no  human  law  can 
override  or  annul  it.  The  rich  often  go  so  far  in 
their  oppression  and  robbery  that  the  poor  are 
compelled  to  demand  and  take  their  rights  in  an 
arbitrary  manner,  and  in  violation  of  human  laws. 
And  they  thus  become  criminals.  Criminals 
grow  upon  society  like  boils  upon  a  man,  and 
from  a  similar  cause.  Remove  the  cause,  and 
the  boil  and  the  criminal  will  disappear  together. 

It  has  been  urged  that  the  rich  are  of  great 
utility,  because  of  their  giving  considerable  sums 
for  charitable  purposes  The  fact  is  that  they 
have  become  rich  only  by  making  other  people 
poor ;  and  are  continually  getting  richer  by 


78 

making  other  people  poorer ;  and  their  revenues 
are  derived  by  taking  from  the  poor  their  portions. 
So  that  when  a  man  receives  each  year  a  hundred 
thousand  dollars  which  the  poor  people  have 
earned  and  ought  to  have,  and  which  he  has  not 
earned  and  ought  not  to  have,  if  he  shall  give,. 
say,  a  thousand  dollars,  or  even  five  thousand 
dollars,  in  charity,  the  gift  is  not  his.  He  has 
stolen  a  hundred  times  or  twenty  times  that 
much ;  and  is  only  giving  back  to  the  rightful 
owners  a  hundredth  or  a  twentieth  part  of  their 
own  property,  of  which  he  has  robbed  them. 
The  remaining  ninety-nine  hundredths  or  nineteen 
tAventieths  he  spends  in  wasteful  extravagance 
and  debasing  luxury  ;  while  the  poor  people  who 
earned  it  are  suffering  for  the  bare  necessaries  of 
life.  Why,  the  charity  of  the  rich  is  not  even 
worthy  to  be  called  "  conscience  money."  In  the 
first  place,  we  ought  not  to  permit  the  rich  to  rob 
the  poor,  and  then  we  will  have  little  need  of 
charity. 


XV. 

The  humanitarians  of  the  day  are  seeking  to 
aid  the  workingman  by  giving  him  cheap  rent, 
cheap  car  fare  to  and  from  his  work,  cheap  cloth- 
ing, cheap  food  and  all  sorts  of  cheap  things. 
And  to  do  this  they  crowd  him  and  his  family  in 
a  single  room  in  the  top'of  a  seven-story  building, 
without  an  elevator ;  they  give  him  a  stand-up 
seat  on  the  platform  of  a  crowded  car ;  they  clothe 
him  in  garments  which  will  neither  warm  nor 
wear ;  they  feed  him  on  black  bread  and  butterine, 
etc.,  etc.  Possibly  he  does  live  a  little  cheaper; 
but  very  probably  no  better  than  before. 

But  what  is  the  result?  Capital  gives  labor 
what  the  master  gave  the  slave — a  bare  living. 
When  a  workingman' s  expenses  decrease,  his 
wages  soon  follow.  It  is  so  the  world  over. 
The  cheaper  a  workingman  can  live,  the  less 
wages  he  gets.  If  he  can  live  or  exist  on  one 
dollar  a  day,  that  is  exactly  what  his  wages  will 
be.  In  some  countries,  laborers  live  so  cheaply 
that  they  receive  only  what  is  equivalent  to  a  few 


80 

cents  a  day ;  and  such  would  be  the  condition 
here,  if  they  could  live  on  as  little.  The  human- 
itarian method,  therefore,  is  not  the  proper  one  ; 
for  it  results  finally  in  nothing  save  a  reduction 
of  wages,'and,  in  time,  in  a  reduction  of  the  com- 
forts of  the  workingman. 

The  wages  of  labor,  as  long  as  capital  retains 
its  present  power,  will  be  the  wages  of  slavery. 

And  the  workingmen,  as  long  as  their  fates  are 
so  completely  in  the  hands  of  their  employers, 
will  be  really  slaves. 


XVI. 

You  may  free  the  black  race  from  its  bonds ; 
you  may  abolish  the  bloody  "  cat- of- nine- tails  ;  " 
you  may  stop  the  buying  and  selling  of  human  be- 
ings ;  and  yet  you  have  not  abolished  human  slav- 
ery ;  for  the  workingmen  are  to-day  the  slaves  of 
their  employers ;  the  poor  are  the  slaves  of  the 
rich ;  and  it  is  as  inhuman  a  system  of  human 
slavery  as  ever  disgraced  the  world. 

Slavery  consists  in  one  individual  having  power 


81 

over  another.  To  the  extent  of  such  power,  the 
weaker  one  is  the  slave  of  the  other.  No  slavery 
ever  existed  except  by  the  stronger  exerting  his 
power  to  make  the  other  subservient  to  his  will ; 
and  whenever  this  is  done,  it  is  human  slavery, 
whether  it  be  in  Maine  or  in  Egypt. 

The  slaves  of  the  South  were  fed  and  clothed 
by  the  owners.  They  worked  such  hours  as  the 
owners  commanded.  The  owners  reaped  the  re- 
sults of  their  labor,  except  such  portions  as  were 
expended  to  supply  them  with  food  and  clothing. 
They  lived  in  rows  of  huts 

To-day,  the  employers  give  the  laborers  barely 
the  means  for  purchasing  their  food  and  clothing. 
The  employers  dictate  the  hours  which  the  laborers 
shall  work.  The  employers  reap  the  result  of  the 
labor,  except  that  they  give  the  laborers  just 
enough  to  permit  them  to  live. 

The  long  rows  of  small  cottages,  which  are  con- 
sidered a  luxury  for  the  laboring  men  as  compared 
with  the  pig-pen  tenement  houses  which  many  li ve 
in,  have  a  painful  resemblance  to  and  but  faintly 
disguise  the  slave  huts  of  old.  They  are  not  quite 
as  bad,  simply  because  the  white  laborer  of  to-day 


82 

has  not  yet  become  quite  as  degraded  as  were 
the  black  slaves. 

But  the  resemblance  between  the  labor  of  to- 
day— the  labor  which  is  the  creature  of  capital — 
and  the  slavery  of  the  past,  is  sufficient  to  cause 
a  thoughtful  people  to  pause.  It  is  time  to  con- 
sider whither  we  are  drifting.  If  so  many  of  our 
fellow-beings  are  so  near  slavery,  we  may  well 
fear  that  they  may  reach  the  name  as  well  as  the 
fact. 

XVII. 

The  true  wealth  of  society  consists  in  the  ac- 
cumulation of  th'e  useful  products  of  labor  in  the 
hands  of  the  men  who  produce  them.  This  wealth 
makes  society  contented,  strong  and  durable. 
But  when  these  products  are  accumulated  in  the 
hands  of  a  few  who  have  not  produced  them  ; 
when  a  large  portion  of  the  products  are  unneces- 
sary and  mere  luxuries ;  and  when  the  real  pro- 
ducers, who  deserve  all,  really  get  nothing  but  a 
bare  existence ;  such  a  condition  makes  society 
discontented,  weak  and  ready  for  dissolution. 


83 

Capital,  when  aggregated  in  the  hands  of  a  few, 
is  a  curse  to  any  community  or  country.  It 
seldom  produces  good  results ;  and  for  every 
blessing  it  imposes  a  hundred  curses.  And  any 
good  that  is  done  by  it  can  be  better  done  by  the 
Government.  It  is  a  many-armed  monster  whose 
hands  are  stretched  out  in  all  directions  to  seize 
upon  the  homes  of  the  poor,  and  take  from  them 
the  right  to  a  place  on  the  earth  to  eat  and  sleep, 
except  on  the  payment  of  a  never-ceasing  tribute 
or  tax,  which  the  monster  will  not  forego,  upon 
which  tribute  the  monster  grows  fatter  and 
greedier,  and  by  means  of  which  his  strength  is 
increased,  so  that  he  is  able  to  reach  out  farther 
and  seize  upon  the  homes  of  more  people. 

And  what  country  is  not  better  off  without 
such  capital?  Give  us  our  homes;  save  us  from 
this  eternal  tribute;  and  we  can  well  afford  to 
never  see  or  hear  of  such  capital.  We  can  raise 
what  we  want,  and  we  can  eat  it  ourselves.  We 
can  raise  the  material,  and  make  our  own  clothing. 
We  can  be  independent  and  happy  ;  and  not  work 
half  as  hard  as  we  would  be  compelled  to  if  there 
were  hoards  of  capital  in  our  midst. 


84 

If  by  abolishing  rent  and  interest  and  dividends, 
we  would  drive  such  capital  out  of  the  country 
it  can  only  mean  that  the  people  who  are  now 
such  a  burden  upon  us,  who  collect  rent  and  in- 
terest from  us,  and  use  the  money  to  support 
themselves,  instead  of  working  to  do  so ;  who  sap 
our  vitality ;  who  take  from  us  the  very  money 
we  should  be  saving  up  for  a  "rainy  day  ;"  that 
these  people  would  lift  themselves  from  our 
shoulders,  and  go  and  be  a  burden  upon  and  draw 
rent  and  interest  from  other  nations. 

We  can  gladly  say  farewell  to  them,  for  their 
leaving  cannot  harm  us.  The  broad  and  fertile 
lands  will  be  left ;  the  houses  will  be  left ;  the 
farmers  will  be  left ;  the  factories  will  be  left  • 
there  will  be  grain  and  meat  raised  and  eaten  ; 
there  will  be  coats  made  and  worn.  And  the 
communication  between  the  farmer  and  the  fac- 
tory constitutes  commerce.  If  we  want  money, 
we  can  dig  it ;  or  we  can  load  ships  with  grain 
and  meat,  and  they  will  bring  us  the  shining  gold 
from  Europe ;  and  it  won't  have  to  go  back  there 
as  interest,  either. 

No  nation  can   be   depleted   of   money    where 


85 

there  is  industry.  The  hearts  and  muscles  of  the 
workmen  and  the  fertility  of  the  soil  constitute  the 
real  capital  of  a  country.  It  is  the  kind  of  capi- 
tal which  feeds  and  clothes,  and  warms  and  cures. 
Piles  of  gold,  mountain  high,  could  not  make  us 
one  particle  happieri  So  let  the  misers  and 
sharks  go ;  and  we  will  be  all  the  happier.  The 
farms  will  once  more  be  tilled  by  the  owners.  With 
no  rent,  nor  interest  nor  tax  collector  to  sap  the 
revenues,  or  make  doubtful  the  title  or  tenancy, 
the  farms  will  be  improved  and  made  more  fertile ; 
and  green  hedges,  fine  orchards,  stanch,  com- 
fortable houses  and  fine  stock,  will  replace  the 
shambling  arrangements  which  now  barely  make 
the  place  habitable. 

A  man  who  rents  a  place  he  can  never  expect 
to  own  has  no  incentive  to  improve  its  fertility, 
or  adorn  it  at  his  own  expense;  for  as  he  may 
not  occupy  the  place  another  year,  such  expense 
would  be  a  loss  to  him.  And  a  man  who  has  to 
pay  interest  upon  a  mortgage  cannot  afford  to 
improve  his  place  as  well  as  if  he  had  no  interest 
to  pay.  And  he  cannot  feel  the  same  interest  in 
a  mortgaged  farm,  which  half  belongs  to  the 


86 

mortgagee,  as  he  would  feel  if  no  one  had  any 
claim  on  the  place  but  himself. 

But  if  it  is  his  for  life,  if  it  is  to  be  his  life 
home,  he  will  soon  be  arranging  things  for  his 
comfort  and  convenience ;  he  will  try  to  make  his 
land  productive,  and  will  freely  expend  the  money 
for  that  purpose,  which  had  previously  gone  to 
the  mortgagee,  because  he  knows  he  will  reap 
the  benefit  of  it. 

But  it  is  said  that  capital,  in  the  sense  of  its 
aggregation  in  the  hands  of  a  few,  is  the  friend 
and  ally  of  labor ;  that,  without  the  enterprises 
of  capital,  labor  would  suffer.  If  by  this  it  is 
meant  that  it  benefits  the  people  to  whom  it  gives 
employment,  the  proposition  is  false.  The  direct 
effect  of  such  capital  upon  the  people  it  employs 
is  to  degrade  them,  and  make  them  mere  machines, 
entitled  to  nothing  but  oiling  and  repairs.  The 
operatives  in  the  large  factories,  and  the  lower  class 
of  employes  upon  railroads,  have  nothing  to  be 
thankful  to  capital  for.  Their  pay  is  reduced  to 
the  lowest  possible  amount;  and  their  labor  in- 
creased to  the  extent  of  their  endurance.  And 
that  constitutes  human  slavery.  It  is  unremitting 


87 

toil  for  a  bare  existence.     It  takes   the  sunshine 

^^.      j*     -&"• 
out  of  life,  and  leaves  it  an  eternal  night  of  toil. 

Before  there  were  these  large  factories,  the 
work  which  is  now  done  in  them  was  distributed 
in  small  shops  or  factories  scattered  throughout 
the  country.  And  the  smaller  the  shops,  and 
the  more  evenly  they  were  distributed,  the  more 
independent,  intelligent,  contented  and  prosperous 
were  the  people  who  worked  in  them.  This  was 
the  natural  condition,  and  in  this  condition  the 
laws  of  supply  and  demand  played  little  part,  and 
were  easily  regulated. 

But  capital  has  built  immense  factories,  and 
equipped  them  with  machines  and  facilities.  It 
has  induced  the  people,  the  shoe-makers  and 
tailors,  to  work  for  them ;  and  gotten  them  under 
its  control.  It  has  then  gained  power.  The 
next  step  is  to  see  how  little  it  can  pay  them, 
and  how  much  work  they  can  endure ;  and  so 
the  poor  victims  find  their  wages  often  reduced 
and  seldom  raised. 

The  laws  of  demand  and  supply  now  operate, 
and  become  a  source  of  trouble.  These  large 
factories,  monopolizing  the  whole  business  of  a 


88 

continent,  far  from  the  source  from  which  they 
receive  their  supplies,  and  far  from  the  points  to 
which  they  ship  their  goods,  are  subject  to  all 
sorts  of  influences ;  such  as  high  freights,  a 
scarcity  of  raw  material,  over-production,  a  glut 
in  the  market,  and  so  on.  When  the  price  of 
raw  material  or  of  freights  is  low,  they  employ  a 
large  force  and  manufacture  to  their  fullest  extent. 
And  thus  the  market  is  often  glutted.  Then 
there  is  a  re-action.  And  when  there  is  little  de- 
mand, or  freights  are  high,  or  the  price  of  raw 
materials  is  high,  they  manufacture  very  little,  or 
none  at  all ;  and  thus,  a  large  number  of  laborers 
are  often  thrown  out  of  employment,  and  wages 
are  reduced  as  to  the  others. 

And  when  there  is  competition  between  rival 
factories,  they  sell  at  low  prices,  and  try  to  save 
themselves  by  reducing  wages.  When  times  are 
good,  the  wages  are  not  raised,  because  capital 
wishes  to  provide  a  surplus  to  meet  contingencies, 
or  pay  dividends ;  and  hence  it  will  claim  it  can- 
not afford  to  raise  the  wages  again.  When  an- 
other emergency  arises,  the  wages  are  again 
reduced,  until  the  bottom  is  reached.  And  the 


89 

capitalists  will  never  think  the  bottom  is  reached 
until  the  laborers  strike  and  rebel  against  further 
reduction. 

If  the  work  were  distributed  over  the  country, 
the  supply  and  demand  would  be  more  equal. 
There  is  so  much  consumed  every  year ;  and 
there  should  be  so  much  manufactured .  And 
there  would  be  steady  employment  all  the  year 
round,  at  regular,  paying  wages,  for  the  artisans 
of  the  land;  and  there  would  be  no  occasion  for  any 
one  to  be  thrown  out  of  employment. 

But  the  effect  of  capital  is  to  create  a  great  de- 
mand at  one  time  for  laborers,  and  to  reduce  the 
demand  at  another  time.  And  this  creates  a 
large  mass  of  floating  laborers,  who  are  utterly 
dependent  upon  the  vagaries  of  capital  for  sub- 
sistence. Without  capital  they  would  not  exist 
as  a  body,  but  would  have  remained  in  their 
proper  condition.  They  are  entirely  unnecessary, 
as  a  class,  to  society.  And  capital  deserves  no 
credit  for  giving  them  now  and  then  something  to 
do  by  means  of  which  they  keep  soul  and  body 
together;  but  it  rather  should  be  blamed  for 
creating  such  a  class,  in  the  first  place. 


90 

The  influences  of  capital,  the  luxury  and  ex- 
travagance of  the  rich,  the  glitter  and  glare  of  the 
cities,  and  the  burdens  which  rest  upon  the  pro- 
ducers on  account  of  these  idle  classes,  make 
them  discontented  with  their  lot,  and  induce 
them  to  forsake  their  farms  and  swell  the  throngs 
in  the  cities.  And  once  there,  if  they  are  unable 
to  live  honestly,  they  will  live  dishonestly. 

These  large  cities  are  unnatural  and  unneces- 
sary ;  and  they  have  bad  influences  upon  the 
morals  of  society. 

Just  so  long  as  we  have  these  aggregations  of 
capital,  and  these  large  manufacturing  establish- 
ments, we  will  have  these  conflicts  between  labor 
and  capital.  The  selfishness  and  greed,  the  power 
and  the  influence  of  the  one  class,  will  continually 
work  evil  to  the  interests  and  well-being,  and  to 
the  rights,  as  well,  of  the  other  class. 

Then  let  us  manufacture  nearer  home  ;  as  near 
home  as  we  can.  Let  us  have  as  few  middlemen 
as  possible;  for  they  all  have  to  be  supported. 
Let  us  scatter  our  artisans  among  us  as  much  as 
possible,  and  they  will  be  equal  and  independent 
with  the  rest  of  us.  Let  us  do  away  with  the 


91 

necessity  of  great  cities,  by  decreasing  trade. 

Let  us  have  no  trade,  except  for  such  things  as 
we  cannot  possibly  make  or  obtain  among  our- 
selves ;  let  us  have  our  village  millers  again ;  let 
us  see  the  jolly  independent  village  cobbler  take 
the  place  of  the  pampered  shoe  merchant  and 
manufacturer,  and  his  paupered  enslaved  work- 
men ;  let  us  have  the  village  tailor,  with  all  his 
oddities,  in  place  of  the  rich  clothing  manufacturer 
and  his  crowd  of  pale-faced  women  who  work 
from  morn  till  midnight  for  the  means  of  bare 
existence. 

XVIII. 

As  to  the  disastrous  effect  of  landlordism 
upon  a  country,  let  us  take  a  striking  example. 

In  Ireland  to-day  we  see  a  land  without  homes  ; 
a  people  without  hope.  A  land  without  liberty  ; 
a  nation  of  rebels  A  land  of  landlords  ;  a  race 
of  slaves  ;  a  nation  of  tenants,  the  land  in  weeds 
and  the  houses  in  ruins. 

No  good  influences  are  exerted,  and  every  bad 
influence  is  at  work.  If  a  tenant  makes  the  land 


92 

more  productive,  his  rent  is  raised;  if  he  paints 
the  house  or  white-washes  the  fence,  the  rent  is 
raised.  If  the  wife  raises  a  flower  garden  or 
beautifies  the  place  in  any  way,  the  rent  is  raised. 
If  a  tenant  wears  a  new  suit  of  clothes,  the  rent 
is  raised.  If  he  expresses  discontent,  or  demands 
a  decrease  of  rent,  he  is  summarily  ousted.  What 
encouragement  to  industry !  What  a  magnificent 
plan  by  which  to  construct  a  nation  !  No  wonder 
the  people  are  degraded  and  desperate.  No 
wonder  there  is  discontent  and  lawlessness 

England  needs,  for  her  own  protection,  to  have 
control  over  Ireland ;  and  can  have  it  both  in 
peace  and  in  justice  if  she  will  only  adopt  the 
right  course.  But  coercion  will  not  do,  and  com- 
promise measures  will  not  do.  England  must  cut 
the  Gordian  knot,  for  she  cannot  untie  it.  She 
must  give  the  Irish  people  their  homes  ! 

Give  Ireland  homes,  landlord  and  Shylock  and 
tax-proof;  and  it  will  become,  in  twenty  years, 
one  of  the  most  prosperous  and  beautiful  countries 
on  the  globe. 

How  shall  it  be  done  ?  By  the  simplest  and 
fairest  means.  Let  the  tenants  pay  the  landlords 


93 

for  the  land  in  yearly  installments,  no  greater 
than  the  rent,  for  twenty  years ;  let  each  tenant 
know  that  if  he  makes  his  payments  promptly,  the 
land  is  his.  That  he  may  call  it  his  own  from 
the  start :  that  it  is  his  on  condition  of  his  mak- 
ing those  payments  And  he  will  treble  its 
productiveness ;  he  will  beautify  and  adorn  it ; 
and  the  payment  which  is  now  so  grievous  a 
burden,  will  set  on  his  broad  shoulders  and  his 
happy  heart  as  lightly  as  a  stray  feather  on  the 
limb  of  an  oak.  Instead  of  emigration  from,  it 
would  be  immigration  to,  the  Green  Isle.  Do 
away  with  landlordism  and  tenantry  in  Ireland, 
and  rebellion  and  poverty  and  ignorance  will 
disappear  with  them. 

Or,  better  still,  inaugurate  in  Great  Britain  the 
reform  herein  proposed ;  so  that  the  idle  classes 
will  have  no  revenues  save  from  the  national  debt 
and  foreign  countries,  and  no  money  will  be  drained 
from  Ireland ;  and  within  one  year  after  the  pas- 
sage of  the  law,  and  long  before  it  need  go  into 
effect,  the  good  influences  will  be  felt.  The  large 
land-owners,  as  a  class,  will  be  quite  ready  and 
willing  to  dispose  of  all  the  land  they  cannot  use. 


94 

on  the  best  terms  they  can  make,  and  they  wont- 
be  very  unreasonable  about  it,  either,  at  least 
not  for  long.  The  real  farmers  will  soon  be  reap- 
ing the  full  fruits  of  their  labors ;  and  that  i& 
enough.  The  lords  and  dukes  may  have  their 
revenues  lessened ;  the  cold  and  purse-proud  ar- 
istocrats may  be  slightly  thawed  out;  the  idle 
classes,  the  titled  paupers,  will  have  no  one  to 
provide  for  them ;  but  the  true  nobles,  the 
yeomanry  of  the  land,  the  disinherited  heirs  of 
the  glory  of  England,  will  be  freemen  again. 


XIX. 

As  a  reform  which  should  go  hand  in  hand  with 
the  abolishment  of  the  means  by  which  money  may 
earn  money,  the  lands  of  the  world  should  be  made 
absolutely  free  from  taxation. 

It  may  be  stated  as  a  correct  principle  that  gov- 
ernments should  derive  the  revenues  for  their  sup- 
port, in  the  manner  which  shall  be  least  oppres- 
sive upon  and  least  obnoxious  to  the  people  who 
are  governed. 


95 

At  present,  all  property  is  held  subject  to  the 
right  of  confiscation  by  the  Government,  if  the 
holder  shall  fail  to  pay  the  tax  which  is  levied 
In  other  words,  the  land  is,  in  effect,  only  rented 
by  the  owner,  who  is  really  but  a  tenant ;  and  the 
State  may  oust  him  at  any  time  for  a  failure  to 
pay  rent.  And  there  is  no  mercy  shown,  no 
remission  made  for  misfortunes.  The  Govern- 
m  ent  is  only  a  common,  ordinary,  heartless  land- 
lord. 

This  uncertainty  of  title  and  the  collection  of 
the  tax  result  in  a  multitude  of  evils  which  are 
quite  worthy  of  abolishment. 

The  taxes  are  so  numerous  and  irregular  that 
it  is  impossible  to  foretell  them,  or  keep  run  of 
them.  The  State  has  its  various  taxes ;  the 
county  has  several,  and  then  the  city  and  the 
township  have  a  few  more.  They  are  of  all 
kinds  and  of  all  sizes.  They  constitute  a  series 
of  perplexities  which  continually  worry  an  owner, 
and  destroy  his  peace  of  mind. 

The  taxes  are  payable  yearly ;  so  that  a  man 
is  compelled  every  year  to  provide  the  money 
to  pay  them,  or  forfeit  his  land,  subject,  how- 


ever,  to  redemption  within  a  specified  time,  on 
payment  of  large  penalties.  This  is  simple, 
plain,  unadulterated  tyranny.  No  man  ever  pays 
a  tax,  under  such  circumstances,  without  a  feel- 
ing of  resentment. 

The  fact  that  a  home  may  be  lost  so  easily, 
and  can  only  be  held  subject  to  such  rigid  terms, 
makes  it  less  desirable  to  be  a  home  owner.  It 
takes  away  half  the  sanctity  of  a  home  and  fire- 
side, to  know  that  they  are  only  rented  from  the 
State,  and  from  the  county  and  the  city  and  the 
township,  as  well.  Such  an  array  of  rapacious, 
insatiable,  pitiless  landlords  is  quite  sufficient  to 
appall  any  one. 

The  manner  of  collection  is  both  offensive  and 
expensive.  There  is  a  Tax  Assessor  and  a  Tax 
Collector  in  each  township.  The  Assessor  is  a 
spy  and  a  sneak;  he  pries  into  a  man's  smoke 
house,  peeps  into  his  dwelling,  opens  his  barn 
door,  and  counts  his  live-stock,  to  see  how  much 
property  he  has.  This  is  a  simple  outrage  upon 
individual  rights  and  common  decency,  and  is 
tyrrany. 

The  Collector  is  a  vandal  and  a  robber.     He 


97 

comes  with  the  awful  alternative  of  "fork  over 
or  get  out."  Then  there  is  that  vulture,  the  tax 
buyer,  who  subsists  upon  the  misfortunes  of  his 
neighbors,  and  gloats  exultingly  when  he  can 
turn  a  poor  widow  from  her  homestead.  He  is 
enough  to  damn  any  law  which  brings  him  into 
existence. 

The  taxes  and  all  the  expenses  of  their  collec- 
tion come  upon  the  producers,  and  never  upon  the 
tax-payer,  unless  he  be  the  cultivator.  If  he  be 
a  landlord,  he  charges  them  in  as  rents,  and  the 
tenant  pays  them.  And  they  are  onerous.  There 
is  an  army  of  men  in  each  State,  engaged  in  the 
business  for  more  or  less  of  their  time  ;  and  they 
are  paid  by  the  producers. 

Hence,  these  taxes  are  collected  by  force ; 
they  are  grudgingly  paid ;  they  are  burdensome  ; 
they  are  a  direct  imposition  upon  the  producers  ; 
they  are  expensive  to  collect;  they  involve  an 
objectionable  system  of  prying  into  private  af- 
fairs, which  is  incompatible  with  the  dignity  of 
any  Government ;  they  create  discontent,  and  ex- 
cite opposition.  And  they  should  be  abolished. 

The,  money  necessary  to  support  the   different 


98 

Governments  can  be  raised  in  such  a  manner 
that  the  people  will  not  feel  that  they  are  paying 
it.  There  need  be  no  tax  or  revenue  Asses- 
sors or  Collectors,  and  no  bother  about  taxes  ;  no 
tax-sales,  and  no  tax-sharks.  And  the  method  is 
not  only  simple,  but  adequate  and  just. 

The  expenses  of  the  National  Government  are 
paid  by  import  duties  and  taxes  on  tobacco, 
whisky,  etc. ;  so  that  it  levies  no  tax  upon  land. 
These  duties  and  taxes  are  a  burden  upon  the 
consumers  ;  they  are  grudgingly  paid  ;  and  they 
>  should  be  supplanted  by  revenues  derived  from 
the  control  and  operation,  by  the  National  Gov- 
ernment, of  the  telegraph  system  and  the  through 
lines  of  railway ;  the  revenues  of  which  are  now 
paid  by  the  people  to  the  stockholders  and  bond- 
holders, and  are  lost  to  society. 

The  expenses  of  the  State  Governments  should 
be  paid  from  moneys  derived  as  profits  from  the 
operation  of  the  highways.  The  roads  and  high- 
ways along  which  must  pass  the  produce  of  the 
farmer  to  market;  along  which  must  pass  his 
supplies  in  return ;  along  which  must  pass  the 
letters  and  newspapers  and  books  and  telegraph 


messages,  and  all  exchanges  of  knowledge  and 
goods  between  the  people  ;  and  along  which  must 
pass  all  the  travelers  of  the  land — these  roads 
and  highways  are  to-day  controlled  by  individuals 
arid  corporations,  who  levy  such  tolls  as  they 
please ;  let  freely  pass  such  as  they  chose,  and 
openly  rob  the  others,  as  did  the  old  Robber 
Barons  of  the  Rhine,  in  the  Dark  Ages. 

These  highways  should  be  constructed,  kept 
in  repair,  controlled  and  owned  by  the  State 
Governments;  except  such  as  are  the  great 
horoughfares  through  the  country,  and  those 
should  be  owned  and  managed  by  the  National 
Government 

These  highways  pay  an  enormous  profit  over 
their  operating  expenses,  amounting  to  about 
$200,000,000  a  year;  or  nearly  ONE  MILLION 
DOLLARS  PER  DAY.  It  is  made  up  by  outrageous 
and  unjust  tolls,  upon  the  highways  of  the 
people.  It  is  paid  out  as  dividends  to  stock- 
holders arid  interest  to  bondholders.  And  these 
people,  a  large  share  of  whom  live  in  Europe,  are 
thereby  supported  in  idleness  and  luxury,  at  the 
expense  of  the  people  of  this  country.  It  is  un- 


100 

just  and  ought  to  be  stopped ;  and  the  people 
have  a  right  to  stop  it.  They  have  a  right  to 
say  that  tolls  shall  not  be  levied  upon  their  high- 
ways by  private  individuals  and  corporations  for 
their  own  benefit.  They  have  a  right  to  give 
them  back  their  money,  take  the  property,  and 
thenceforth  use  the  highways  for  the  benefit  of 
the  people  for  all  time  to  come. 

The  total  amount  of  State  taxes  levied  in  the 
United  States  amounts  to  only  about  $60,000,- 
000  a  year.  If  there  were  no  interest  no  State 
debts  to  be  paid,  it  would  not  amount  to  half  that 
sum. 

So  that,  by  abolishing  all  tax  on  lands,  and 
operating  the  highways,  the  States  would  have 
a  revenue  of  about  $190,000,000  a  year  more 
than  they  need.  If  it  is  not  needed,  it  should 
not  be  collected;  and  the  freights  and  fares  may 
be  reduced  sufficiently  to  yield  only  the  amount 
required.  The  people  then  would  be  saved,  not 
only  the  present  burdensome  taxation,  but  also 
a  large  amount  in  freights  and  fares. 

The  city  governments  should  control  and  oper- 
ate the  street  railways  in  like  manner;  and  the 


101 

revenues  in  most  cases  will  be  fully  sufficient  to 
pay  the  municipal  expenses. 

If  not,  there  are  other  means  of  raising  the 
funds,  without  taxing  land;  such  as  licenses, 
water  taxes,  fees,  etc. 

The  result  of  the  change  would  be  to  absolutely 
save  the  people  all  the  present  burden  of  taxation. 
It  might  put  a  few  wealthy  bond-holders  to  earn- 
ing their  living,  but  the  country  can  stand  that. 
The  people  would  pay  the  usual  postage  and  less 
freights  and  fares,  and  at  the  same  time  be  pay- 
ing the  expenses  of  government. 

There  would  also  be  uniformity  and  fairness  in 
charges.  There  being  no  competition,  the  fare 
from  New  York  to  Chicago  would  not  be  one  dol- 
lar one  day  and  twenty-three  dollars  the  next. 
Freights  would  not  be  up  one  week  and  down  the 
next.  There  would  be  no  pools,  no  extortions, 
no  favors.  No  rich  firm  or  corporation  would  be 
granted  special  rates  over  the  small  dealers. 

There  would  be  an  immense  amount  of  money 
saved  in  the  management  of  the  railroads.  Every 
little  road  now  must  have  a  president,  at  a  prince- 
ly salary,  who  generally  does  nothing  but  act  as 


102 

a  dignified  figure-head.  There  must  be  a  vice- 
president  or  two,  to  tell  some  of  the  managers 
how  to  manage  the  road.  And  so  on  down  through 
all  the  stages.  While  the  man  who  manages  the 
whole  Post  Office  Department  of  thellnited  States 
Government  gets  less  salary  than  the  managers 
of  some  of  the  smallest  railways. 

If  it  is  said  that  the  Government  will  mismanage 
the  railroads  and  telegraph  system,  we  point  to 
the  magnificent  management  of  the  post  office  sys- 
tem ;  arid  to  the  bankruptcy  and  bonded  indebt- 
edness and  gross  mism;magement  of  the  railroads 
as  they  are  now  controlled. 

If  it  is  said  that  the  railroads  will  become  po- 
litical machines,  we  point  again  to  the  postoffice 
system,  and  show  that  the  country  has  never  suf- 
fered, and  is  not  likely  to  suffer,  from  that  cause. 
And  we  also  point  to  the  political  influence  at 
present  exercised  by  means  of  bribery  and  cor- 
ruption the  most  foul,  by  the  immense  corpora- 
tions of  our  land  over  our  Legislatures  and  even 
our  Congress. 

With  the  extermination  of  all  corporations, 
there  will  be  an  extermination  of  the  worst  influ- 


103 

ences  which  have  affected  and  destroyed  the  cred- 
it of  the  legislation  of  the  land.  If  the  govern- 
ment shall  control  the  railroads,  how  can  it  affect 
the  honesty  of  legislation  ?  The  party  in  power 
may  appoint  its  own  followers  to  the  railroad  of- 
fices, as  it  now  does  to  the  post  offices  ;  but 
they  are  held  to  a  strict  accountability  by 
the  voters  of  the  land  for  their  honesty.  And 
the  old  Jacksonian  doctrine,  that  "  to  the  victors 
belong  the  spoils/'  is  fast  becoming  obsolete. 
The  intelligence  of  our  time  has  decreed  that  that 
party  retains  power  the  longest  which  is  purest 
and  honestest  in  all  its  doings.  But  there  need, 
at  least,  be  no  more  bribery  of  Congressmen  and 
legislators  by  corporations  with  immense  inter- 
ests at  stake. 

The  German  government  has  been  operating 
railroads,  and  it  has  both  decreased  freights  and 
accumulated  a  large  profit.  What  more  do  we 
want?  The  people  don't  want  anything  better 
than  that.  But  the  railway  officials,  the  railway 
bondholders  and  stockholders  want  to  continue  to 
corrupt  our  legislators,  and  to  outrage  and  bleed 
the  people.  Shall  they  be  permitted  to  do  it? 


\) 


XX. 

Capital  cannot  exist  without  labor,  the  politi- 
cal economists  say.  And  they  complaisantly  add 
that  labor  cannot  exist  without  capital.  Not 
slave  labor,  no  ;  but  the  free  labor  of  a  free  man ; 
the  farmer  wrinkling  mother  earth  with  furrows  ; 
tempting  by  toil  from  her  bosom  the  carbon  of 
life  ;  the  cobbler  in  his  little  shop,  working  by 
his  own  sweet  will,-  and  as  his  wants  and  wishes 
dictate ;  the  tailor  too,  in  his  own  shopt  his  own 
lord  and  master  ;  the  miller  and  his  water  power 
mill,  grinding  the  farmer's  grain  for  a  well-earned 
toll;  the  sons  helping  their  fathers,  instead  of 
being  the  apprenticed  slaves  of  a  stranger ;  the 
rosy-cheeked,  joyful  daughters  doing  the  family 
weaving  and  sewing  at  home,  instead  of  being 
the  sad-eyed,  wan-faced  operatives  in  a  factory, 
dependent  for  life  upon  the  whims  or  needs  of 
the  owner ;  this  labor  would  be  left.  And  the 
fair  land,  the  little  shops  and  the  mills  will  feed 
and  clothe  the  people,  and  are  all  the  capital  we 
need. 


105 

Let  the  sons  and  daughters,  let  the  fathers  and 
mothers  be  not  scattered,  like  slave  families 
were  once  scattered,  shattering  every  holy  and 
sacred  tie ;  drying  up  in  the  hearts  the  well 
springs  of  truth  and  justice,  and  making  them 
hard-hearted,  desperate  and  ready  for  any  crime. 
Let  them  do  at  home  the  labor  they  owe  to  soci- 
ety ;  let  the  fireside  be  preserved ;  let  the  hon- 
esty of  the  youth  and  the  modesty  of  the  maid 
be  preserved  ;  let  the  independence  of  the  lathers, 
from  the  vindictiveness  of  a  landlord,  or  the  fick- 
leness of  an  employer,  be  preserved  Give  each 
family  a  chance  for  a  home  ;  a  hope  for  a  free 
fireside,  in  which  no  rent  or  interest  or  tax  col- 
lector shall  ever  penetrate,  and  on  which  no  mort- 
gage can  ever  rest 

Give  us  back  again  the  little  villages  of  vine 
embowered  cottages,  green-latticed  and  white 
walled ;  with  flowers  and  trees  in  natural  order 
and  profusion  covering  spacious  yards  ;  healthy 
rosy- cheeked  children  at  boisterous  play,  and  a 
contented  and  peaceful  people.  And  we  will 
gladly  give  back  every  good  the  rich  have  done 
us. 


106 

Let  not  a  home  in  all  this  fair  land  be  subject 
to  seizure  for  either  debt  or  taxes. 

When  a  man  once  obtains  a  home,  let  him  and 
his  family  know  that  they  are  in  a  citadel  from 
which  no  force  can  dislodge  them.  Surround 
home  with  a  safe  guard  like  this,  and  how  sacred 
how  holy,  how  prized  would  be  a  home  !  What  an 
incentive  to  any  man,  poor  and  depraved  though 
he  be,  to  lift  up  his  head  and  hope.  Great  estates 
and  magnificent  palaces  may  attract  the  greedy 
and  vain ;  but  the  men  and  women  who  consti- 
tute the  sturdy  strength  upon  which  the  struct- 
ure of  every  nation  is  built,  would  prize  far  more 
than  castled  crag  or  battlement,  the  security,  the 
content  and  the  peace  of  an  impregnable  home. 

In  olden  times  the  rich  were  robbers,  as  they 
are  to-day;  but  they  committed  their  crimes  in 
an  honester,  though  a  more  barbarous,  manner. 
When  they  wanted  money,  they  found  it,  and 
boldly  took  it.  To-day  they  steal  it.  The  only 
protection  then  was  to  build  fortresses  on  high 
crags,  with  tall  battlements  and  broad  walls.  But 
through  treachery  or  force,  even  the  strongest  of 
these  would  sometimes  fall. 


107 

To-day  such  protection  is  as  much  needed  as 
then.  The  world  is  full  of  people  who  will  not 
work  ;  but  who  persist  in  appropriating  the  fruits 
of  other  people's  labor. 

They  commit  robbery  every  moment  of  their 
lives.  They  assault  and  ruin  our  homes ;  they 
take  our  goods ;  thev  enslave  our  sons  and 
daughters  ;  our  wives  and  ourselves  ;  they  drive 
us  to  degradation  deeper  than  that  of  the  black 
slaves  of  old.  The  mortgagor,  the  shylock,  the 
home-miner,  the  coupon  cutter,  all  are  on  the 
highway,  well  armed  and  intent  on  robbery. 

And  we  cry  for  protection  We  ask  to  be 
secured  in  our  homes ;  to  have  left  to  us  the 
fruits  of  our  labors  ;  to  be  given  our  freedom  and 
native  independence  ;  to  have  removed  the  bur- 
dens of  providing  food  and  clothing  for  the  rich 
idlers  and  their  horde  of  panderers  ;  in  a  word, 
to  be  give  a  chance  for  life. 

When  the  savage  Indians  captured  a  man,  they 
nt  le  ist  gave  him  a  ch-ince  for  lif  j,  even  such  a 
poor  one  as  running  the  terrible  gauntlet.  But 
here  the  poor  have  none.  They  are  slaves  ! 
Doomed  to  eternal  and  painful  toil !  To  live  with- 
out hope  ;  to  die  without  peace. 


XXI. 

The  wrongs  sought  to  be  remedied  have  existed 
ever  since  history  began ;  and,  probably,  almost 
ever  since  life  began.  And  the  world  seems  to 
have  made  no  progress  whatever  in  the  matter  of 
relieving  them.  In  the  civilized  portions  of  the 
world  to-day,  the  social  life  is  almost  an  exact 
counterpart  of  the  social  life  in  the  civilized 
nations  of  old.  And  in  the  barbarous  portions  of 
the  world,  there  has  been  no  change.  Five  hun- 
dred years  before  the  Christian  era,  even  in  "far 
Cathay,"  we  he.-tr  the  "  shrill  voiced  barbarian 
from  the  south  "  crying  out  against  the  exactions 
of  the  usurers  and  the  oppressions  of  the  rich,  and 
deploring  the  down-trodden  condition  of  the 
working  classes.  The  evil  has  been  familiar  to 
every  one  ;  but  there  have  been  wide  differences 
of  belief  as  to  the  cause.  Every  imaginable 
theory  has  been  suggested ;  and  innumerable 
remedies  have  been  devised.  A  few  have  been 
partially  adopted.  Some  have  been  of  slight 
benefit,  while  others  have  miserably  failed. 
And  the  evil  still  remains 


109 

The  suggestions  herein  made  as  to  the  cause 
and  the  remedy  are  submitted  to  the  thinking 
people  of  the  world  for  their  candid  consideration. 
For  no  reform  can  be  made,  either  in  the  customs 
or  laws  of  a  free  people,  until  the  thinking  people 
shall  have  first  indorsed  it  as  right  and  necessary . 

And  if  this  theory  of  the  c.iuse  and  the  remedy 
be  thus  indorsed,  the  question  will  arise  as  to 
how  the  reform  may  be  put  in  practical  operation. 

In  the  first  place,  the  masses  must  have  a  full 
opportunity  to  become  familiar  with  all  its  features. 
It  must  be  presented  to  them  in  a  fair  and  candid 
manner.  If  they  shall  approve  of  it,  and  feel  that 
it  is  the  proper  way  to  right  their  wrongs,  it 
should  then  be  made  a  political  issue  ;  and  men 
chosen  as  legislators  who  will  advocate  such  laws 
as  will  properly  put  it  in  force. 

The  rich  aristocrats  and  corporations  will  fight 
like  robbers  in  their  caves  for  their  ill-gotten 
booty.  Their  tools  and  menials  will  crowd  the 
halls  of  every  Legislature.  Their  influence  will 
be  felt  even  in  many  of  the  newspaper  offices. 
They  have  stopped  at  nothing  in  the  past  to 
further  their  raids  of  robbery ;  and  they  will  stop 


110 

at  nothing  now.  A  man  who  has  been  bred  a 
robber  does  not  hesitate  to  kill.  A  man  bred  as 
a  pauper  does  not  hesitate  to  beg  or  steal  Mis- 
representation and  falsehood,  and  bribery  and 
corruption,  will  be  brought  in  play  by  them. 
But  with  the  masses  once  awakened  from  their 
terrible  night  of  slavery,  and  knowing  their  rights 
and  the  justice  of  their  cause,  these  influences 
cannot  prevail.  And  all  the  hordes  of  wasteful 
idlers,  of  usurers  and  robbers,  of  landlords  and 
tyrants,  must  and  shall  be  beaten  and  destroyed. 

The  reform  may  commence  in  a  single  State, 
arid  its  best  effects  will  be  fully  felt.  Such  State 
could  suffer  no  harm,  and  be  placed  at  no  disad- 
vantage ;  but,  on  the  contrary,  would  be  bettered 
from  the  start. 

Let  the  State  pass  a  law  abolishing  rent  after 
twenty  years  from  date ;  and  before  that  time  the 
farmers  would  own  their  farms. 

Let  the  State  pass  a  law  abolishing  interest ; 
and  the  mortgages,  and  trust  deeds,  and  notes 
would  soon  disappear. 

Let  the  State  condemn  the  property  of  the  rail- 
way companies  under  its  right  of  eminent  domain,. 


Ill 

the  same  as  the  railways  condemned  the  land  in 
the  first  place;  let  a  fair  value  be  fixed,  and  pay 
it  to  the  bondholders  and  stockholders  in  ten  or 
twenty  annual  installments.  Make  it  a  lump 
sum,  but  include  in  it  a  fair  allowance  for  the  time 
they  will  have  to  wait  for  their  money.  And  set 
aside  one-half  of  the  net  earnings  for  the  purpose 
of  making  these  payments. 

And  the  reform  will  be  readily  and  honestly 
accomplished  within  the  twenty  years  ;  although 
its  influence  will  be  felt  at  once. 

But  it  may  be  said  that  when  the  farmers  shall 
have  bought  their  farms  and  paid  off  their  mort- 
gages, and  when  the  State  shall  have  paid  for  the 
railroads,  there  would  be  no  money  left. 

The  fact  is  that  the  landlords  and  mortgagees 
and  railroad  companies  would,  in  the  twenty  years, 
take  no  more  money  out  of  the  State  than  they 
would  if  the  law  should  not  be  passed  At  the 
present  rate  of  rent,  the  landlords  are  paid,  under 
the  present  system,  the  full  value  of  their  land  in 
about  every  fourteen  years.  But  the  present  val- 
ue is  not  the  fair  and  just  value  They  have 
given  land  a  fictitious  value  by  their  compe- 


112 

tition  for  investments.  And  with  a  law  pro- 
hibiting rent  after  twenty  years,  this  false  val- 
ue will  gradually  disappear,  and  at  the  end  of 
that  time  the  land  would  sell  for  its  natural  value, 
which  would  probably  not  be  over  one-half  its 
present  selling  value  So  that,  at  the  end  of  the 
terra,  the  farmers  will  have  acquired  the  full  own- 
ership of  their  farms,  without  paying  any  more 
than  they  would  otherwise  have  paid  as  rent. 

The  railway  property,  while  it  also  has  a  ficti- 
tious value,  would  probably  be  purchased  by  the 
State  at  its  present  selling  value,  as  the  State 
would  at  once  assume  possession,  and  there  would 
be  no  opportunity  for  a  decline.  But  the  amount 
will  be  easily  paid  out  of  the  net  earnings,  long 
before  the  twenty  years.  The  bondholders  and 
stockholders  now  receive  the  net  earnings  ;  and 
they  would  thus,  under  the  new  law;  take  no  more 
money  out  of  the  State  during  the  time  the  State 
would  be  paying  them,  off  than  they  would  take 
in  the  same  time  under  the  present  system.  But 
there  would  be  this  significant  difference,  that 
they  would  then  stop  draining,  and  the  money 
would  remain  in  the  State  thenceforth  ;  and  the 


113 

State  could  then  not  only  reduce  freights  and 
fares,  but  could  absolutely  abolish  all  other  taxa- 
tion upon  its  people. 

So  that  the  reform  can  be  put  in  operation,  and 
the  landlords  and  stockholders  paid  off  in  full,  and 
the  people  of  the  State  forever  released  from  their 
grip,  and  their  immense  drain  of  money  stopped, 
without  paying  them  any  more  money,  nor  any 
faster  than  we  would  pay  them  anyhow  under  the 
present  system  within  the  next  twenty  years,  or 
even  less. 

And  from  that  time  forth,  no  toiler  on  the  farm 
or  in  the  shop,  would  pay  tribute  to  rich  idlers. 
The  $100,000,000,  and  more,  which  the  aristo- 
crats draw  yearly  from  the  State,  would  remain 
with  those  who  should  earn  it,  and  could  and 
would  be  used  to  improve  and  fertilize  the  farms, 
to  beautify  and  adorn  the  homes,  to  educate  the 
people,  and  to  make  them  prosperous  and  con- 
tented 

There  would  be  better  citizens.  Being  home- 
owners, they  would  be  more  interested  in  govern- 
mental affairs  than  renters  are.  They  would  take 
more  interest  in  elections,  and  vote  more  intelli- 


114 

gently  than  the  gangs  of  workmen  who  at  present 
do  not  vote  at  all,  or  do  not  care  much  how  they 
vote,  or  vote  as  their  employers  direct.  Each 
citizen  having  property  rights,  he  would  be  inter- 
ested iii  good  laws  well  executed. 

There  will  be  no  landlords  and  no  tenants.  No 
rent  collectors  and  no  distraints  for  rent.  No  tax 
collector,  no  tax  sales  and  no  taxes.  There 
would  bean  absolute  security  of  title.  A  man 
could  have  a  home  free  from  all  conditions. 

There  would  be  no  mortgages,  and  no  money 
loaners.  No  shylocks,  no  pawn-brokers.  No  tax 
sharks,  no  tax  titles. 

Nobody,  in  fact,  but  plain,  simple,  independent 
farmers,  who  would  own  their  farms  and  would 
not  owe  a  cent ;  or  independent,  intelligent,  con- 
tented mechanics  and  artisans ;  or  steady,  reliable 
business  men,  who  would  not  be  doing  business 
on  borrowed  capital ;  who  would  not  be  heavily 
in  debt  for  goods,  and  not  liable  to  fail  at  the  slight- 
est shrinkage  in  prices  ;  but  men  who  would  own 
their  storehouses  and  their  goods ;  who  would 
buy  and  sell  for  cash,  and  who  could  never  fail, 
for  they  would  not  owe  anything,  and  nobody 
would  owe  them. 


115 

The  farmers  would  raise  as  mnch  produce,  or 
as  much  as  is  necessary  ;  the  merchants  would 
sell  just  as  much,  for  there  would  be  just  as  much 
consumed  ;  the  factories  would  make  just  as  many 
goods ;  there  would  be  just  as  much  food  eaten, 
and  as  many  clothes  worn.  The  production  of  the 
State  would  be  increased,  and  could  readily  be 
exchanged  for  foreign  productions  as  required. 

The  credit  of  the  State  could  not  but  be  good. 
Paying  no  tribute,  she  would  keep  her  own  re- 
sources, or  obtain  a  full  equivalent  in  other  prod- 
ucts in  exchange.  Her  merchants  and  farmers 
would  all  be  land  owners  and  owe  nothing.  In 
short,  the  State  would  have  the  best  of  credit.  But 
she  would  have  no  need  of  it.  For  no  man  among 
her  citizens  would  need  to  buy  on  credit. 

There  would  be  no  aristocracy,  as  the  term  is 
now  understood.  No  large  estates  in  lands  or 
bonds  and  mortgages.  No  idle  rich  whose  waste- 
ful extravagance  and  airs  of  superiority  would  be 
a  menace  and  a  discouragement  to  the  poor. 

There  would  be  no  miserable  poor;  for  every 
effect  of  such  a  reform  would  be  to  give  the  weak 
a  chance  to  get  strong ;  tbe  poor  a  chance  to  easily 


116 

earn  a  living.     And  if  every  one  can  easily  earn 
an  honest  living,  there  will  surely  be  less  crime. 

The  State  would  stand  forth  among  her  neigh- 
bors landlord  and  mortgage  free,  a  land  of  pros- 
perity, contentment  and  peace,  with 

"  A  bold  peasantry,  their  country's  pride." 

Then  why  may  not  the  reform  be  begun  ?  And 
why  may  it  not  be  begun  at  once?  The  answer 
lies  with  the  struggling  but  all-powerful  work- 
ing classes. 

The  rich  idlers  will  oppose  it  ;  and  there  must 
inevitably  be  a  contest.  But  with  a  cause  which 
asks  but  justice,  and  which  is  naturally  and 
morally  right,  there  will  be  right  and  strength 
upon  the  one  side,  and  wrong  and  weakness  upon 
the  other.  It  then  only  requires  coolness  and 
moderation  to  win  the  fight  for  the  downtrodden 
of  all  climes. 


UNIVERSITY 


YB  61 145 


UNIVERSITY  OF  CALIFORNIA  LIBRARY 


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